Former CJ Sophia Akuffo resigns from Council of State – Report

Former Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo, has reportedly resigned from the Council of State, ending her tenure on the country's highest presidential advisory body.

According to a report by myjoyonline.com, the former Chief Justice submitted her resignation in 2025 and has not attended any meetings of the Council since then.

However, neither Sophia Akuffo nor the Presidency has officially commented on the development, and the reasons behind her resignation remain unknown.

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Sophia Akuffo's reported departure follows a period of intense public scrutiny linked to the removal of former Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo.

In April 2025, when the Council of State considered whether a prima facie case had been established against Torkornoo, 30 of the 31 members voted in favour.

Akuffo was the only member who abstained from the vote, although she did not publicly explain her reason.

She later appeared before the Article 146 committee investigating Torkornoo at the request of the suspended Chief Justice and testified in her defence.

Subsequently, she openly criticised the proceedings, arguing that Torkornoo had not received a fair hearing.

Sophia Akuffo served on the Supreme Court for more than two decades before becoming Ghana's 13th Chief Justice in 2017.

She was the second woman to occupy the position after Georgina Theodora Wood. Prior to her appointment as Chief Justice, she also served as a judge of the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights.

Her tenure on the Council of State also attracted public attention in 2023 when she joined pensioners protesting aspects of the government's Domestic Debt Exchange Programme, arguing that retirees should not shoulder an unfair burden in the country's economic recovery efforts.

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