Accra, May 31, GNA - Brimming with confidence, speed and a lot of alertness, Mrs. Georgina Theodora Wood, nominee for Chief Justice of Ghana faced the Vetting Committee of Parliament, answering a total of 31 questions posed by the 26-member committee.
Mrs. Wood promised to fight corruption within the Judicial Service, which she admitted was no longer a perception but something that was real and present.
She was of the opinion that since "we were dealing with human beings, there was the possibility to have some people within the judicial service who could be corrupt."
Mrs. Wood said the recent report of Transparency International shows that the situation is not so bad, especially at the top of the ladder.
"I can however, say that there could be what I would call petty bribery in the service. But given the expected reforms, accountability and strict monitoring, there is no reason why we cannot reduce the perception and bring the perception to the barest minimum." When asked by Mr John Mahama, NDC-Bole Bamboi, what she would do about the perception of corruption and if it was just perception or fact, Mrs Wood said she would, when given the nod, work at ensuring that recruitment would now be done with greater scrutiny, while working at improving salaries of staff, saying that it was one of the surest ways of eliminating the perception in the minds of the public.
The one hour 55 minute-vetting was taken in a relaxed stride with Mrs. Wood promising that promotion would also be merit-based, arguing that there is no basis for a high court judge to twist the rules and make judgements in favour of people who do not deserve it.
She promised to spend a lot of her time to build a culture of integrity, describing it as the fundamentals of a good judicial system. Mrs. Wood promised to sustain the institutional reforms initiated by her predecessor, Chief Justice George Acquah, indicating that she would work tirelessly at changing the wrong perceptions held by the public, especially people who come through the judicial process.
On how soon she would put up the financial tribunal advocated by her predecessor, she noted that she was not going to tie herself down to dates. But promised that she will quickly study the Act and see what can be done immediately.
Mr. Hackman Owusu-Agyeman, NPP-New Juaben North expressed concern about the unusual delays in the justice system. To this, Mrs Wood said the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) programme would take care of the situation and ensure that the large number of cases before the courts are reduced, leaving the more serious ones to be delved into by competent jurisdiction.
The first ever-lady Chief Justice nominee said the ADR has a promising future, adding that a recent study showed astounding results of its impact on meeting judicial needs of the country. She called for a quick passage of the ADR Bill into an Act if Ghanaians, especially women and children are to access speedy justice. She said it was important for a lot more people to go for the ADR system to quicken the pace of justice while working at freeing judges for more complicated cases.
On whether there was any connection between her and Mr Francis Poku, the National Security Advisor before her appointment to chair the Committee which probed the M.V. Benjamin cocaine case, Mrs Wood answered in the negative, saying: "I never met Mr Francis Poku until he appeared before the Committee."
She also said she never found anything conflicting in her role as a Supreme Court judge who was also sitting on a public inquiry case. Mrs. Wood said she and the Ghanaian judiciary have gone past the point where she will sit on a case in which she had an interest. "What matters is the public interest and this is paramount at all times."
On the case of, if her appointment would not conflict her role, when confirmed as Chief Justice, with her workings with the Inspector General of Police, considering her ruling in the Georgina Wood Committee Report, she said, "We worked on a case, with the public interest as the key issue. I came out with my recommendations to my appointing authority and that is it. I leave it to the appointing authority to take the matter further.
"It is not for me to chase that action is taken on the matter," she stated, adding, "I have no animosity, but just carried out a public duty."
Answering a question by Hajia Alima Mamaha, Minister of Women and Children, Mrs Wood said it was not possible to hold courts, especially for women and children.
"What is possible and which I would push for is to have special days to hear cases on women and children."
She said she would also quickly invite Supreme Court Judges sitting in the regions to a meeting to take hold of the various courts in the regions in a more speedy and fair manner and push them to visit the courts periodically to monitor the work there and mentor the workers and report back to the Chief Justice on the ways forward. 31 May 07
