PROGRESSIVE PEOPLES PARTY (PPP) vs. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

The Progressive Peoples Party (PPP), a duly established political party in Ghana, filed a writ in the Supreme Court on 31 March 2014 seeking declarations and orders that the Government of Ghana failed to fulfill its constitutional duty to provide free, compulsory, and universal basic education within the stipulated timeframe (7 January 1993 to 6 January 2005) as mandated by Articles 14(1)(e), 25(1)(a), and 38(2) of the 1992 Constitution. The plaintiff contended that the Government's Education Act, 2008 (Act 778), failed to provide adequate legal mechanisms to compel school attendance, rendering parts of the Act inconsistent with the Constitution. The plaintiff sought declarations of constitutional breaches and orders compelling the Government to enforce compulsory basic education.

AKAMBA, JSC: On 14th May 2015 this Court unanimously dismissed the above writ, but we reserved our reasons. We now proceed to indicate the reasons for the said decision. The Plaintiff is a duly established political party in Ghana. The Defendant is the nominal representative of the Republic. Plaintiff issued a writ in this Court on 31st March 2014 seeking seven reliefs. RELIEFS SOUGHT The reliefs were fashioned as follows: “(a) A declaration that on the true and proper interpretation of articles 25 (1) (a) and 38 (2) of the 1992 Constitution, Government of Ghana had only twelve years commencing from January 7, 1993 to January 6, 2005 to have delivered to the Ghanaian Children of School going age free, compulsory and universal basic education and that the Government has failed in discharging the said constitutional duty imposed on her by the people of Ghana. (b) A declaration that on the true and proper interpretation of articles 14 (1) (e), 25 (1) (a) and 38 (2) of the 1992 Co.....