Sophia Akuffo hints of closure of six courts in Central Region

Six courts in the Central Region of Ghana risk being shut down at the end of the year, Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo hinted during her tour of some courts in the region.

The Chief Justice was shocked at the deplorable state of some of the courts she visited on the first day of her tour.

She bemoaned how the buildings are poorly structured and lack the basic amenities, among other things.

Ms Akuffo was particularly taken aback when the Magistrate of the Kasoa District Court pulled out a ‘chamber pot’ from beneath her desk during her visit to the place.

Magistrate Felicia Gandezi, explaining how they have for years, had to deal with the situation of ‘no toilets’ because they have to share the building they occupy with another institution said, “They have the washroom and everything to themselves, let me show you, this is my chamber pot.”

In response, Ms Akuffo said, “This is terrible. You should not be sharing facilities with anybody, Kasoa is a very prosperous municipality…we don’t want this, it’s supposed to be a temporary place. Nobody told me about this, this is totally unacceptable. I see this as a temporary building…. up to the end of the year and we’ll close it down. You'll see so many closures of courts, you'll be surprised”.

Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo is on a four-day tour in the Central Region to assess the current state of the region’s judicial facilities.