I shall demonstrate uncompromising fidelity to the Constitution – Justice Kulendi

Justice Emmanuel Yonny Kulendi, a newly appointed Justice of the Supreme Court of Ghana has pledged to uphold and demonstrate uncompromising fidelity to the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana and to respect the laws of the country in the discharge of his duties as a Justice of the Supreme Court.

Justice Kulendi, made the pledge when he addressed the President and attendees of the swearing-in ceremony of his appointment at the Banquet hall of the Jubilee House today the 26th of May 2020.

“I will courageously and strictly adhere to the terms of the oaths that i have subscribed to this afternoon. Moreover, i shall be guided by my conscience, the fear of God, in what promises to be a challenging but fulfilling and exciting journey and phase of my life” Justice Kulendi said.

“I wish to assure the President of the Republic Ghana that by the enabling Grace of God, i shall like Caesar wife, conduct myself above reproach. In all matters, i shall demonstrate uncompromising fidelity to the constitution, the law and the evidence before me” Justice Emmanuel Yonny Kulendi added.

President Akufo-Addo in his address after administering three Oaths, the Oath of Allegiance, the Judicial Oath and the Oath of Secrecy, to Justice Yonny Kulendi, observed that when he served as Attorney General in the John Kufour administration between 2001 and 2003, he proposed to the then President to consider appointing legal minds directly from the Bar and private practice to the Apex Court of the land. President Kufour he said obliged and appointed Justices Samuel Kofi Date-Bah, the late Professor Tawiah Ocran and the late Professor A. K. P. Kludze to the Supreme Court and they ended up having significant impact on the growth of the Court’s constitutional jurisdiction.

“As President, i have continued in this tradition by appointing the immediate past president of the Ghana Bar Association, Justice Nene Amegatcher, and the former dean of the faculty of law, University of Ghana, Justice Professor Emmanuel Nii Ashie Kotey” President Akufo-Addo said.

“A blend of such persons with others on the Court will enrich the evolution of our country’s jurisprudence. It is one of the strongest reasons for the appointment of Mr. Emmanuel Yonny Kulendi” President Akufo-Addo added.

President Akufo-Addo wished Justice Yonny Kulendi, well in his new office and prayed for God’s speed during his period of stay at the Bench.

Parliament on the 20th of May 2020 approved the nomination of four (4) Justices of the Supreme Court. They are Justice Clemence Jackson Honyenugah, Justice Amadu Tanko, Mr. Yonny Kulendi and Prof. Henrietta Joy Abena Nyarko Mensah Bonsu. Justice Clemence Jackson Honyenugah and Justice Amadu Tanko, were sworn into office last Friday, the 22nd of May 2020 by President Akufo-Addo.

There are now (18) Justices of the Supreme Court and they are His Lordship Justice Anin Yeboah, the Chief Justice of the Republic. The other Justices are His Lordship Justice Julius Ansah, His Lordship Justice Jones Dotse, His Lordship Justice Paul Baffoe Bonnie, His Lordship Justice Nasiru S. Gbadegbe, His Lordship Justice Yaw Appau, His Lordship Justice Gabriel Pwamang. The rest are His Lordship Justice Samuel K. Marful-Sau, Her Ladyship Justice Agnes M.A. Dordzie, His Lordship Justice Nene Abayaateye Ofoe Amegatcher, His Lordship Justice Prof. Nii Ashie Kotey, Her Ladyship Justice Mariama Owusu, Her Ladyship Justice Avril Lovelace Johnson, Her Ladyship Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, His Lordship Justice Clemence Jackson Honyenugah, His Lordship Justice Amadu Tanko, His Lordship Justice Yonny Kulendi and Her Ladyship Justice Professor Henrietta Joy Abena Nyarko Mensah Bonsu.

It is expected that some of the Justices of the Supreme Court would retire from the Bench before the end of the year 2020.