Akufo-Addo Nominates Two Judges To The Supreme Court, None From Chief Justice's List
- President Akufo-Addo has made two new nominations to the Supreme Court bench following the Judicial Council's approval
- The decision comes on the back of a request from the Chief Justice for the President to appoint new judges to the Supreme Court
- The two new judges approval will increase the number of judges on the Supreme Court bench to 17 from 15
President Akufo-Addo has nominated two new judges to the Supreme Court following their approval by the Judicial Council.
The judges included Justice Sophia Rosetta Bernasko Essah, a justice of the Court of Appeal and Professor Richard Frimpong Oppong, a legal academic and fellow of the Ghana Academy of Sciences.
Source: UGC
Both nominees are to be presented to and vetted by parliament as mandated by the Constitution.
Their nomination follows a direct request from Chief Justice Gertrude Torkonoo regarding President Akufo-Addo's need to appoint more judges to the Supreme Court.
PAY ATTENTION: All celebrity news in one place! Follow YEN's Facebook Broadcast channel and read on the go.
She had argued that the Supreme Court's workload was more than what the current judges could handle, leading to undue case delays.
She said more judges could lead to an enhanced Supreme Court system with fast and effective justice delivery.
Justice Torkonoo suggested five persons for nomination, including Justice Afia Serwaa Asare Botwe, the presiding judge in the Ato Forson ambulance procurement trial.
The four other judges were Justice Angelina Mensah Homiah, Justice Edward Amoako Asante, Justice Cyra Pamela Koranteng, and Justice Eric Kyei Baffuour.
However, her action attracted the ire of civil society and other legal stakeholders, who described it as improper.
President Akufo-Addo has yet to nominate any of the judges she had suggested.
GBA lashes out at Chief Justice
The Ghana Bar Association (GBA) has joined legal luminaries and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) to condemn Chief Justice Gertrude Torkonoo's actions.
The Ghana Bar Association said the procedure used by the Chief Justice to nominate the judges is improper.
Saviour Kudze, the Association’s spokesperson, noted that the Chief Justice had erred in her recommendation to the President.
He stated that it was not the place of the Chief Justice to singlehandedly handpick judges to be promoted.
He noted that that decision should have been made in collaboration with several stakeholders, including the Ghana Bar Association, the Attorney General’s Office and the Chief Justice’s Office.
He said the final decision would have been made by the Judicial Council, which the Chief Justice chairs before the request is forwarded to the President.
He stated that the President was not obligated to appoint the people on the list.
NDC demands Chief Justice’s resignation
YEN.com.gh reported that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has demanded Chief Justice Gertrude Sackey Torkonoo's immediate resignation over her request to President Akufo-Addo to appoint five new judges to the Supreme Court.
The NDC National Communications Officer, Sammy Adu Gyamfi, noted that while the Chief Justice had committed certain procedural flaws in her request to the President, his biggest concern was that she had handpicked the judges she wanted him to promote.
The NDC National Communications Officer, Sammy Adu Gyamfi, noted that while the Chief Justice had committed certain procedural flaws in her request to the President, his biggest concern was that she had handpicked the judges she wanted him to promote.
Proofread by Berlinda Entsie, journalist and copy editor at YEN.com.gh
PAY ATTENTION: Stay informed and follow us on Google News!
Source: YEN.com.gh
