Armed Forces Act, 1962 (Act 105)

The armed forces of Ghana are to be raised and maintained, and their strength is determined from time to time by the National Redemption Council.

Each Ghanaian service listed here must be composed of specified components, and each force or reserve must be under prescribed officers’ supervision and control.

A Regular Force is made up of officers commissioned by the Commander-in-Chief and men enrolled under regulations made under the Act.

A Regular Reserve is made up of officers transferred by the President and men transferred under the terms of their enrolment.

The President may establish and maintain Volunteer Forces and Volunteer Reserves under this Act and any regulations made under it.

Regular forces must stay on continuing full-time military service and can be called up for active service; the President may also order reserve or volunteer forces onto the same service.

Regular Reserve, Volunteer Force, or Volunteer Reserve units may be called out for training under regulations made for that purpose.

This section makes the Chairman of the National Redemption Council the Commander-in-Chief and gives that office broad control, appointment, dismissal, reporting, and delegation powers over the Armed Forces.

Civilian employees may be appointed only in the numbers, for the purposes, and under the service conditions that are prescribed.

The President, an authorised person, or a prescribed person may convene a Board of Inquiry when they consider it expedient to investigate matters connected with the Armed Forces or affecting its officers or personnel.

This section creates an Armed Forces Council and says it must advise the National Redemption Council and the Executive Council on major defence and strategy policy matters.

Certain Border Guards and seconded Armed Forces members may exercise officer powers under the Customs and Excise Decree, but not section 102 powers unless above sergeant rank; the Chairman of the National Redemption Council may issue written directions for Border Guards matters until regulations are made.

Section 12 lists who is subject to the Code of Service Discipline, and says no one else is subject to it.

A person who helps, encourages, or joins in committing an offence can be guilty of the offence and punished the same as the main offender.

A person in command of certain armed forces assets commits an offence if, in the listed battle-related situations, they fail to exert themselves, encourage troops, defend, pursue, assist, or keep their station as required.

People subject to the Code of Service Discipline commit an offence if they aid the enemy, disclose specified military or cryptographic information without authority, reveal or misuse signals/passwords, cause false alarms, neglect sentry duties, assault a sentinel, or act to prejudice security.

People subject to the Code of Service Discipline commit an offence if they become prisoners of war through specified neglect or disobedience, fail to rejoin the Armed Forces when able, or aid the enemy.

Members subject to the Code of Service Discipline must not commit listed violence, theft, destruction, or other misconduct connected to operations; breaches are offences.

A person who joins a violent mutiny commits an offence and may be punished by death or a lesser punishment under the Act.

Joining a non-violent mutiny is an offence.

A person commits an offence if they cause or try to promote a mutiny, fail to help suppress one when present, or fail to promptly report an actual or planned mutiny to a superior officer.

A person who disobeys a lawful command from a superior officer commits an offence.

A person must not strike, use violence, or threaten violence with a weapon against a superior officer.

A person who uses threatening or insulting language to, or shows contempt toward, a superior officer commits an offence and may be dismissed with disgrace or otherwise punished under the Act.

A person commits an offence if they quarrel or fight with, or use provoking words or gestures toward, someone subject to the Code of Service Discipline and tend to cause a quarrel or disturbance.

People subject to the Code of Service Discipline commit an offence if they refuse arrest orders, use violence against custody officers or others, resist an escort, or break out of specified places.

Desertion is an offence. A person who deserts can be imprisoned for life in some active-service cases, or up to five years in other cases.

A person who knows about a soldier’s desertion, or intended desertion, must tell a superior officer right away unless there is a reasonable excuse, and must take steps to help apprehend a deserter if possible.

A person who is absent without leave commits an offence and may be punished on conviction with imprisonment for less than two years or a lesser punishment under the Act.

A person who knowingly makes a false statement to extend leave of absence commits an offence.

A person subject to the Code of Service Discipline commits an offence if they strike or otherwise ill-treat a subordinate person in the Armed Forces.

Officers and other members of the Armed Forces commit an offence if they behave scandalously, cruelly, or disgracefully; conviction can lead to dismissal or imprisonment.

Members of the Armed Forces who are drunk, even when off duty, commit an offence and may be punished on conviction.

People subject to the Code of Service Discipline must not fake or worsen illness, or maim or injure themselves or others, with intent to make themselves or another person unfit for service.

People subject to the Code of Service Discipline must not unnecessarily detain another such person in arrest or confinement, and must bring the case to the proper authority for investigation or trial.

People subject to the Code of Service Discipline must not help a person in custody escape or be set free without authority.

A person subject to the Code of Service Discipline commits an offence if they escape from lawful custody.

People subject to the Code of Service Discipline must not resist or obstruct an officer, and must assist when called upon, in duties connected with arrest, custody, or confinement of another such person.

A person subject to the Code of Service Discipline must not refuse or neglect to hand over an officer or man to the civil power, or to help lawfully apprehend them in the stated circumstances.

An officer serving on a Ghana Navy convoy ship must defend convoyed ships, fight if attacked, and not abandon or expose them to danger, or face an offence and punishment on conviction.

A person who wilfully, negligently, or otherwise defaults in losing, stranding, or hazarding Armed Forces vessels commits an offence.

A person commits an offence if, in relation to aircraft or aircraft material, they act or fail to act in ways that risk injury, damage, loss, or destruction; the penalty can be life imprisonment if done wilfully, or less than two years’ imprisonment in other cases.

A person subject to the Code of Service Discipline commits an offence if they fly an aircraft below the prescribed minimum height.

A person who signs an inaccurate certificate about an aircraft or aircraft material commits an offence unless they can show they took reasonable steps to make it accurate.

A person subject to the Code of Service Discipline commits an offence if, while in an aircraft, they disobey a lawful command from the aircraft captain about flying, handling, or safety.

People subject to the Code of Service Discipline must not ill-treat billeted occupants or related premises, must follow certain regulations, and may be punished on conviction.

A person must not make false statements, leave material blanks, or tamper with documents or files covered by this Act or its regulations.

A person who conspires with another person to commit an offence under the Code of Service Discipline commits an offence.

A person who wilfully, negligently, or contrary to regulations causes or is likely to cause fire in a material, defence establishment, or work for defence commits an offence.

It is an offence for any person to use an Armed Forces vehicle without authority, for an unauthorised purpose, or contrary to any regulation, order, or instruction.

People subject to the Code of Service Discipline must not destroy, damage, lose, sell, pawn, or otherwise dispose of the listed property and decorations; doing so is an offence and can lead to imprisonment for less than two years or another lesser punishment.

People subject to the Code of Service Discipline must not steal, fraudulently misapply, or knowingly receive stolen or fraudulently misapplied property.

People subject to the Code of Service Discipline must not make false accusations, knowingly make false statements, or suppress material facts in redress matters; doing so is an offence.

Acts, conduct, disorder, or neglect prejudicial to good order and discipline are offences, and conviction can lead to dismissal with disgrace or a lesser punishment under the Act.

People subject to the Code of Service Discipline commit an offence if they engage in the listed misconduct in section 55.

This section lets a person charged with one service-offence variant be found guilty of a related or less serious offence instead.

A person may be arrested if they have committed, are committing, are about to commit, or are suspected of or charged with a service offence. A person authorised to arrest may use reasonably necessary force.

Officers and men may arrest or order arrests without a warrant in the situations listed here, and such orders must be obeyed.

Appointed officers and men may arrest or detain without a warrant certain persons subject to the Code of Service Discipline, and may also use other prescribed powers to carry it out.

Section 60 says what may happen to a person arrested under this Part, and requires custody officers to provide written accounts within 24 hours.

If a service member is kept in custody without a summary trial or court-martial, the commanding officer must report the delay, the person may petition for release after 28 days, must be released after 90 days unless trial steps have started, and cannot be re-arrested except by written order.

An allegation that a person committed a service offence must be reported as a charge to a Disciplinary Board appointed by the Commanding Officer before it is dealt with.

This section allows certain subordinate officers and men below Warrant Officer rank to be tried summarily by a Disciplinary Board, sets conditions for that trial, limits some punishments, and requires approval for some punishments or excess detention.

This section lets a Disciplinary Board summary-try certain lower-ranking officers and warrant officers charged with service offences, but not anyone entitled to court martial; it may dismiss charges or impose specified punishments, and it must tell the accused about the right to request evidence on oath.

A Disciplinary Board covered by sections 63 and 64 must decide by a majority of its members.

This section changes how certain Armed Forces discipline rules are applied, including summary trials and references to Commanding Officers and delegated officers.

The Council, or authorities it authorises, may convene general and disciplinary courts martial. An authority that convenes one may appoint specified military officers, and in some cases two men where the accused is a man.

A general court martial must have at least five officers, and the panel’s rank composition changes depending on the accused person’s rank.

A general court-martial may try a person subject to the Code of Service Discipline if the person is alleged to have committed a service offence.

The Chief Justice must appoint a person to act as judge advocate at a general court-martial.

Certain people are not allowed to serve as members of a general court martial.

This section sets the minimum and maximum membership of a disciplinary court-martial, requires the president to be appointed by the convening authority (or an empowered officer), and sets rank requirements for that president.

A disciplinary court-martial may try certain service members for alleged service offences, subject to any limits set by regulations under the Act.

A disciplinary court-martial must not impose a sentence with punishment higher than dismissal with disgrace from the Armed Forces, or higher than any other punishment that may be prescribed.

The Chief Justice may appoint a person to act as judge advocate at a disciplinary court-martial.

The Commander-in-Chief may appoint a Judge Advocate-General after consulting the Chief Justice.

Certain listed people must not sit as members of a disciplinary court martial.

A service tribunal should follow the same rules of evidence and procedure as a civil court, unless this Act or regulations expressly provide otherwise.

Section 76 makes certain conduct before a service tribunal an offence, with imprisonment on conviction and a special short detention order for some court-martial cases.

A service tribunal must punish a person convicted under this section, and the punishment depends on whether another enactment sets a minimum penalty or a specific penalty.

Section 78 lists the punishments that may be imposed for service offences and sets special rules and limits for boys, certain ranks, detention, fines, and imprisonment.

People alleged to have committed a service offence may be charged, dealt with, and tried under the Code of Service Discipline, whether the alleged offence happened in Ghana or outside Ghana.

A service tribunal trial is time-barred unless it starts within 3 years of the alleged offence, but certain service offences remain chargeable and triable at any time.

A person who has already had a service-offence charge dismissed, or has been found guilty or not guilty by a service tribunal or civil court, must not be tried again by a service tribunal for that offence or a related offence on the same charge.

The President, or an authority authorised by the President, may quash a guilty finding made by a service tribunal.

The President, or authorities authorised by him, may replace certain service tribunal guilty findings and may also replace the punishment if the original sentence is too severe or exceeds what this Act allows.

A Commander may order a new trial after a guilty finding by a service tribunal if there was a legal irregularity, and the President may dispense with a new trial.

If a service tribunal includes an illegal punishment in a sentence, the President or another authority authorized by him may replace it with a new punishment, subject to prescribed conditions.

The President, or an authority he authorises, may reduce, commute, or cancel punishments in a service tribunal sentence, subject to prescribed conditions.

If a new punishment replaces a service tribunal punishment because of substitution or commutation, it is treated as if the service tribunal had imposed it originally.

This section preserves the Act’s power to quash findings or alter findings and sentences.

A Court-Martial Appeal Court must be established to hear and decide appeals from court-martial decisions.

A person found guilty by a court-martial has a right to appeal to the Court-Martial Appeal Court.

The Court-Martial Appeal Court may disallow an appeal if it writes that there has been no substantial miscarriage of justice.

If the Court-Martial Appeal Court allows an appeal, it may set aside the guilty finding and order not guilty or a new trial; in some cases it may substitute a finding of guilty for another offence and refer punishment back for review.

If a court-martial appeal succeeds, the appeal court must send the case to the President or another authorised authority, which may replace the punishment with a new one.

A new punishment becomes eligible for mitigation, commutation, remission, or suspension in the same way and to the same extent as if the court-martial had imposed it.

When a civil court later tries someone for the same service offence, it must take the earlier service tribunal punishment into account; if the court acquits or convicts, the remaining term of certain tribunal imprisonment or detention is treated as fully remitted.

If a person subject to the Code of Service Discipline has been tried by a civil court, an authorized court officer must provide a certificate to an Armed Forces officer on request, and a prescribed fee must be paid for it.

The Commander-in-Chief may make regulations for the Armed Forces, after consulting the Armed Forces Council, by legislative instrument.