The Ranking Member on the Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee of Parliament, Inusah Fuseini says the Executive Instrument 164 is in breach of the law-making function of Parliament.
According to him, the law which penalizes persons who fail to wear face masks in public criminalizes the offence in a manner that is outside the powers of the Executive.
Speaking to Citi News, the Tamale Central MP said, the law is not only harsh but a breach of the powers of the executive to prescribe such punishment.
“…You remember the first time the President brought the Imposition of Restrictions Bill, the President sought to arrogate himself the power to determine [certain restrictions] for persons under the Bill. That was resisted by Parliament. That was why we created a function called offences and penalty and so it is the sole preserve of Parliament to penalise and not that of the President. That is a long-standing principle of law. The President has no right to penalise. That is the long-standing principle of law.”
The new Executive Instrument, which was signed by President Akufo-Addo on June 15, 2020, makes it mandatory for people to wear face masks in public.
Persons who fail to wear masks could face a jail term of between four and 10 years or pay a fine of between GHS12,000 and GHS60,000 or both.
Section 6 of Act 1012 states that “a person who fails to comply with the restrictions imposed under the Executive Instrument issued under subsection 1 of Section 2 commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine of not less than 1,000 penalty unit (Gh¢12,000) and not more than 5,000 penalty units (Gh¢ 60,000) or to a term of imprisonment not less than four years and not more than 10 years or to both.”
Section 4 (1) of the E.I. 164 states that the police have the authority to make random checks to “ensure enforcement compliance”
