Meet Fred Kwasi Apaloo: The Ghanaian who rose to become Chief Justice in two countries

Justice Fred Kwasi Apaloo is one of Ghana's most respected judges. He served as Chief Justice of both Ghana and Kenya, and made history as the only judge to have served on Ghana's Supreme Court under three different republics.

Born in the Volta Region, Apaloo's career started when he studied law at University College in Hull, England, before being called to the English Bar at Middle Temple in 1950.

After Ghana gained independence in 1957, he returned home to practise law and was appointed a High Court judge in 1960.

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In 1964, he presided over the treason trial involving five people accused of plotting against the late former President Kwame Nkrumah's government.

Among the accused were Information Minister Tawia Adamafio, Foreign Affairs Minister Ebenezer Ako-Adjei, and Convention People's Party Secretary Hugh Horatio Cofie Crabbe.

His decision to acquit the accused earned him a reputation for judicial independence despite creating tension with the government.

Apaloo was then promoted to the Court of Appeal in 1966 and appointed to the Supreme Court of Ghana in 1971.

In 1977, during the rule of the Supreme Military Council, he became Ghana's sixth Chief Justice since independence. He served as Chief Justice until his retirement in 1986.

Following the return to constitutional rule in 1979, the People's National Party government sought to replace him by insisting that he undergo vetting for the office he already occupied.

The matter ended up at the Supreme Court after a citizen, Amoako Tuffuor, challenged the move.

The court ruled that Apaloo automatically became Chief Justice under the 1979 Constitution when it came into force, allowing him to remain in office.

He continued serving after the Provisional National Defence Council, led by Jerry John Rawlings, took power on December 31, 1981.

The military government also attempted to remove him in 1983, but was unsuccessful because of his constitutional position.

After retiring at the age of 65 in 1986, Apaloo joined the Kenyan judiciary. He first served as a High Court judge before rising to the Court of Appeal. He later worked with the World Bank Administrative Tribunal.

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In March 1993, Kenya appointed him as its ninth Chief Justice after a vacancy arose with no obvious local candidate to fill the position.

During his tenure in Kenya, Apaloo was known for his opposition to the death penalty.

He served as Chief Justice until 1995. Apaloo sadly passed on at the age of 79 in April 2000, leaving behind a wife and five children.

MAG/VPO

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