Requiring presence of plaintiffs in court in constitutional cases unconstitutional – H Kwesi Prempeh to CJ
Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo
The Executive Director of the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Professor Henry Kwasi Prempeh has described as unconstitutional the fixation of the Chief Justice on the presence of plaintiffs in constitutional cases in court during hearing.
According to the CDD-Ghana boss, it is unconscionable for any purported rule of procedure to require the presence of plaintiffs who raise issues of constitutional interpretation during the hearing.
“I seriously don't understand this. A plaintiff files a constitutional case before the Supreme Court. The plaintiff is represented by counsel. The case raises only issues of law/interpretation for the Court to decide. There is no trial requiring the plaintiff to testify or be cross-examined in the case. Why exactly must the plaintiff be physically present in court along with his counsel?
“So, if a citizen residing in Bawku or Florida proceeds to the Supreme Court under Article 2 and invokes the original jurisdiction of the Court to determine a constitutional matter, must that citizen, though represented by counsel, show up in court in Accra when or each time the case is called?” Prof. Prempeh, a trained lawyer questioned in a Facebook post shared on March 27, 2024.
His statement comes on the back of comments made by the Chief Justice, Gertrude Torkonoo describing the instance of plaintiffs leaving only their lawyers to show up in constitutional cases as disrespectful and a show of lack of interest in their pursuit of justice.
But according to Prof. Prempeh, such requirements as deemed by the Chief Justice is rather unreasonable as it burdens a plaintiff and is also unconstitutional to say the least.
“What if the Article 2 plaintiff is a corporate entity? Must the CEO, too, show up in court just for the heck of it?
“What could be the policy rationale for such a grossly inefficient "rule" that also unreasonably burdens citizens in their exercise of their Article 2 right and thus disincentives the filing of constitutional cases? In my view, the rule, if a rule it is, is plainly unconstitutional,” he added.
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