The bar has been set very low for the new Chief Justice – IMANI vice president

Bright Simons, a vice president of IMANI Africa, has said that the power of the Judicial arm of government to check the president and his appointees is at its lowest point in the 4th Republic of Ghana.

According to him, the bar has been set very low for the new Chief Justice of Ghana who will be replacing Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah, who left the position following his retirement.

“Whether fair or not, the Ghanaian Judiciary in the last few years saw its reputation for checking abuse of power by the Executive sink to its lowest level in the 4th Republic.

“The bar has thus been set very low for the new Chief Justice,” Simons wrote in a tweet shared on Thursday, May 25, 2023.

In an earlier tweet, Simons called for a more citizen-empowering judicial in the country.

His call was contained in a tweet to a GhanaWeb publication that announced the appointment of Justice Jones Dotse as Acting Chief Justice (CJ) after Chief Justice Anim Yeboah retired on May 24, 2023, and did not return to the bench.

In a tweet, he wrote “Ghana’s Chief Justice retires. The activist CSOs I work with recall his rejection of our amicus brief against the EC’s decision to refuse birth certs as proof of citizenship. His reason?”

He continued by adding “We had been criticizing the EC on the radio. We look forward to a more citizen-empowering judiciary.”

Background:

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo nominated a Supreme Court judge, Gertrude Torkornoo, as the next Chief Justice of Ghana.

The president indicated that it is important that he begins the processes for the replacement of the outgoing Chief Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah now, so as not to create any vacuum.

If approved by the Parliament of Ghana, Justice Torkornoo will be the third appointment to the office of Chief Justice since Akufo-Addo became president in 2017.

She will also be the third female Chief Justice in the history of Ghana, following in the footsteps of Justices Georgina Theodora Wood and Sophia Akuffo.

View Bright Simons tweet below:

President Akufo-Addo did not say Ghana will go to the capital market SOON. Interpretations of what the President said must not be construed as his.#Ghana #JoyNews #CitiNewsroom #TV3NewDay #GMG pic.twitter.com/UlPGnBzm69

— Richard Ahiagbah (@RAahiagbah) May 25, 2023