The Ghana Bar Association (GBA) has ordered President John Dramani Mahama to immediately revoke the suspension of Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo.
According to the Ghana Bar Association, the suspension of the Chief Justice is unconstitutional and lacks a legal basis under Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.
The GBA in a statement dated April 26, stated, “The Ghana Bar Association calls for the immediate revocation of the suspension of the Chief Justice as it considers the suspension to be unconstitutional”.
They emphasised the suspension was carried out without any published Constitutional Instrument, Statutory Instrument, or regulation governing the exercise of that presidential discretion, in breach of Article 296 of the Constitution.
The Ghana Bar Association also directed President Mahama to release the full decision establishing a prima facie case against Chief Justice Torkornoo.
The PRO of the GBA Saviour Kudze in an interview with Eyewitness News on April 29 stated, “There ought to have been regulations in the nature of a constitutional instrument or executive instrument before exercising such discretion because the essence is to govern how it is exercised so that it doesn’t get abused. So, we are saying that in the absence of such regulation, we are of the view that the president has not done well”.
However, the Deputy Attorney General, Justice Srem-Sai Speaking on TV3 stated, “If a group of lawyers meet at an event and decide that the best call they can make is that the president unmakes that which the constitution says should be private, be made public, what does that tell you? It tells you that it is a group who are trying to subvert the constitution.
“Do they need to go to law school to understand that when the constitution says something should be private, and a series of court decisions confirm that the process, including the petition, the conversation, and everything about it should be private?” he questioned.
Meanwhile, the Director of Legal Affairs for the National Democratic Congress, Edudzi Tamakloe, asserted that the President acted within the law and did not err.
He stated, “A prima facie determination is derived from the validity of the petition, and that duty, the terms of the constitution prevail on the chief justice, has been performed. There is nothing in the constitution that prevents the Council of State from performing that constitutionally imposed duty once the president has referred the petition to them. Any attempt to stop that process will be subverting the constitution,”.
See the statement below:
