Ghana

Article 14, clause 1 states:

Every person shall be entitled to his personal liberty and no person shall be deprived of his personal liberty except in the following cases and in accordance with procedure permitted by law -

• … (d) in the case of a person suffering from an infectious or contagious disease, a person of unsound mind, a person addicted to drugs or alcohol or a vagrant, for the purpose of his care or treatment or the protection of the community…

Article 42 states:

Every citizen of Ghana of eighteen years of age or above and of sound mind has the right to vote and is entitled to be registered as a voter for the purposes of public elections and referenda.

Article 60 states:

(8) Whenever the President is absent from Ghana or is for any other reason unable to perform the functions of his office, the Vice-President shall perform the functions of the President until the President returns or is able to perform his functions…

(11) Where the President and the Vice-President are both unable to perform the functions of the President, the Speaker of Parliament shall perform those functions until the President or the Vice-President IS able to perform those functions or a new President assumes office, as the case may be…

Article 69 states:

(1) The President shall be removed from office if he is found, in accordance with the provisions of this article - (a) to have acted in willful violation of the oath of allegiance and the presidential oath set out in the Second Schedule to, or in willful violation of any other provision of, this Constitution; or

• (b) to have conducted himself in a manner -
  • (i) which brings or is likely to bring the high office of President into disrepute, ridicule or contempt; or
  • (ii) prejudicial or inimical to the economy or the security of the State; or
• (c) to be incapable of performing the functions of his office by reason of infirmity of body or mind.

(2) For the purposes of the removal from office of the President, a notice in writing -

• (a) signed by not less than one-third of all the members of Parliament, and
• (b) stating that the conduct or the physical or mental capacity of the President be investigated on any of the grounds specified in clause (1) of this article, shall be given to the Speaker who shall immediately inform the Chief Justice and deliver the notice to him copied to the President.

(3) The notice referred to in clause (2) of this article shall be accompanied by a statement in writing setting out in detail the facts, supported by the necessary documents, on which it is claimed that the conduct or the physical or mental capacity of the President by investigated for the purposes of his removal from office.

(4) Subject to clause (5) of this article, the Chief Justice shall, by constitutional instrument, immediately convene a tribunal consisting of the Chief Justice as Chairman and the four most senior Justices of the Supreme Court and the tribunal shall inquire, in camera, whether there is a prima facie case for the removal of the President.

(5) Where a notice under clause (2) of this article is delivered to the Chief Justice in respect of the removal from office of the President on the grounds of physical or mental incapacity, the Chief Justice shall, in consultation with the professional head of the Ghana Health Services, causes a medical board to be convened which shall consist of not less than four eminent medical specialists and the President shall be informed accordingly.

(6) The President shall be invited to submit himself for examination by the medical board within fourteen days after the appointment of the board. …

(9) Where the tribunal or medical board specified in clauses (4) and (5) of this article determines that there is a prima facie case for the removal of the President or that the President is by reason of physical or mental incapacity unable to perform the functions of his office, the findings shall immediately be submitted to the Speaker of Parliament through the Chief Justice and copied to the President.

(10) Parliament shall, within fourteen days after the date of the findings of the tribunal or medical board, move a resolution whether or not the President shall be removed from office.

(11) The resolution for the removal from office of the President shall be by a secret ballot and shall be taken to be approved by Parliament if supported by the votes of not less that two-thirds of all the members of Parliament after prior debate...

Article 89 states:
(5) A member of the Council of State shall hold office until the end of the term of office of the President unless--

• …(b) [that member] becomes permanently incapacitated…

(6) The appointment of a member of the Council of State may be terminated by the President on grounds of stated misbehaviour or of inability to perform his functions arising from infirmity of body or mind, and with the prior approval of Parliament.

Article 94, clause 2 states:

A person shall not be qualified to be a member of Parliament if he…

• (ii) has been adjudged to be of unsound mind or is detained as a criminal lunatic under any law in force in Ghana.

Article 144 states:

(6) Where the office of Chief Justice is vacant, or where the Chief Justice is for any reason unable to perform the functions of his office -

• (a) until a person has been appointed to, and has assumed the functions of, that office; or
• (b) until the person holding that office has resumed the functions of that office; as the case may be, those functions shall be performed by the most senior of the Justices of the Supreme Court.…

(9) Where the office of a Justice of the High Court or a Chairman of the Regional Tribunal is vacant or for any reason, a Justice of the High Court or a chairman of the Regional Tribunal is unable to perform the functions of his office, or if the Chief Justice advises the President that the state of business in the High Court or Regional Tribunal so requires, the President may, acting in accordance with the advice of the Judicial Council, appoint a person who has held office as, or a person qualified for appointment as, a Justice of the High Court or a Chairman of the Regional Tribunal to act as a Justice of the High Court or a chairman of the Regional Tribunal.…

Article 146 states:
(1) A Justice of the Superior Court or a Chairman of the Regional Tribunal shall not be removed from office except for stated misbehaviour or incompetence or on ground of inability to perform the functions of his office arising from infirmity of body or mind.

(2) A Justice of the Superior Court of Judicature or a Chairman of the Regional Tribunal may only be removed in accordance with the procedure specified in this article.

(3) If the President receives a petition for the removal of Justice of a Superior Court other than the Chief Justice or for the removal of the Chairman of a Regional Tribunal, he shall refer the petition to the Chief Justice, who shall determine whether there is a prima facie case.

(4) Where the Chief Justice decides that there is a prima facie case, he shall set up a committee consisting of three Justices of the Superior Courts or Chairmen of the Regional Tribunals or both, appointed by the Judicial council and two other persons who are not members of the Council of State, nor members of Parliament, nor lawyers, and who shall be appointed by the Chief Justice on the advice of the Council of State.

(5) The committee appointed under clause (4) of this article shall investigate the complaint and shall make its recommendations to the Chief Justice who shall forward it to the President.

(6) Where the petition is for the removal of the Chief Justice, the President shall, acting in consultation with the Council of State, appoint a committee consisting of two Justices of the Supreme Court, one of whom shall be appointed chairman by the President, and three other persons who are not members of the Council of State, nor members of Parliament, nor lawyers.

(7) The committee appointed under clause (6) of this article shall inquire into the petition and recommend to the President whether the Chief Justice ought to be removed from office.

(8) All proceedings under this article shall be held in camera, and the Justice or Chairman against whom the petition is made is entitled to be heard in his defence by himself or by a lawyer or other expert of his choice.

(9) The President shall, in each case, act in accordance with the recommendations of the committee.

(10) Where a petition has been referred to a committee under this article, the President may - (a) in the case of the Chief Justice, acting in accordance with the advice of the Council of State, by warrant signed by him, suspend the Chief Justice; (b) in the case of any other Justice of a Superior court or of a Chairman of a Regional Tribunal, acting in accordance with the advice of the Judicial Council, suspend that Justice or that Chairman of a Regional Tribunal.

(11) The President may, at any time, revoke a suspension under this article.

Article 147, clause 2 states:

A panel member of a Regional Tribunal other than the Chairman may be removed by the Chief Justice acting on the advice of the Judicial Council and of the Regional Co-ordinating Council on grounds of stated misbehaviour or incompetence or on ground of inability to perform his functions arising from infirmity of body or mind.

Article 151, clause 1 states:

A person holding a judicial office may be removed from office by the Chief Justice on grounds only of stated misbehaviour, incompetence or inability to perform his functions arising from infirmity of body or mind and upon a resolution supported by the votes of not less than two­ thirds of all the members of the Judicial Council.

Article 152, clause 1 states:

A panel member of a lower court or tribunal other than the person presiding -

• … (c) may be removed by the Chief Justice on the advice of the Judicial Council on ground of stated misbehaviour, incompetence or inability to perform his functions arising from infirmity of body or mind.

Article 189, clause 4 states:

A member of the Audit Service Board, other than the Auditor­ General or the Head of the Civil Service or his representative, may be removed from office by the President, acting in accordance with the advice of the Council of State, for inability to perform the functions of his office arising from infirmity of mind or body or for any other sufficient cause.

Article 224 states:

Where the Commissioner dies, resigns or is removed from office or is for any other reason unable to perform the functions of his office, the President shall, acting in consultation with the Council of State, appoint a person qualified to be appointed Commissioner to perform . . those functions until the appointment of a new Commissioner.

Article 264, clause 2 states:

The office of the Chairman or a member of the Lands Commission or of a Regional Lands Commission other than the Executive Secretary and the Regional Lands Officer shall become vacant if - …

• (c) he is removed from office by the President or, in the case of a member of a Regional Lands Commission, by the Minister responsible for lands and natural resources for inability to perform the functions of his office or for stated misbehaviour.

Article 273, clause 4 states:

A member of a Judicial Committee of the National House of Chiefs shall be removed from office on the ground of proven misbehaviour or of infirmity of mind or body by the votes of not less than two-thirds of all the members of the National House of Chiefs.

Article 274, clause 6 states:

A member of a Judicial Committee of a Regional House of ChIefs may be removed from office on the ground of proven misbehaviour or infirmity of mind or body by the votes of not less than two-thirds of all the members of the Regional House of Chiefs.

Article 295, clause 7 states:
Where power is vested by this Constitution in any person or authority to appoint a person to act In or perform the functlons of an office if the holder of the office is unable to perform those functions, the appointment shall not be called in question on the ground that the holder of the office could have performed those functions.

Excerpts from the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana (1992, last amended 1996)

Regulation 17, subregulation 2 states:

A polling assistant may act as the presiding officer of a polling station during the absence or incapacity of the presiding officer.

Excerpt from the Public Elections Regulations (2012)

Section 7 states:

(1) A person qualifies to be registered as a voter if…

• (b) he is of sound mind…

(5) A person who is a patient in an establishment maintained wholly or mainly for the reception and treatment of persons suffering from mental illness or mental defectiveness or who is detained in legal custody in any place shall not be treated as resident there for the purposes of this section…

Section 9, subsection 2 states:
A person shall not be qualified to be a member of Parliament if he…

• (b) has been adjudged or otherwise declared
  • (ii) to be of unsound mind or is detained as a criminal lunatic under any law in force in Ghana…
• (f)  is not qualified to be registered as a voter under any law relating to public elections…

Excerpts from the Representation of the People Law (1992, last amended 2006)

Section 1, subsection 2 states:

A person is not qualified to be a candidate for the office of President of Ghana if he:…

• (b) has been adjudged or otherwise declared:…
  • (ii) to be of unsound mind or is detained as a criminal lunatic under any law in force in Ghana…
• (f) is not qualified to be registered as a voter under any law relating to public elections…

Excerpt from the Presidential Elections Law (1992)