Former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo disagrees with the recent remarks made by former President John Dramani Mahama, who claimed that President Nana Akufo-Addo had appointed judges with ties to the NPP to the judiciary.
According to Sophia Akuffo, such remarks unfairly damage the reputation of the judges and might put undue pressure on the judiciary.
In a Townhall Talk interview on Asaase Radio, Sophia Akuffo questioned whether Mahama’s appointments during his administration also took into account political allegiance. She emphasized the significance of staying away from such terms when talking about judicial appointments.
“He has been through the process of appointing other people before, so was it because they were NDC?… It always upsets me when you get comments like, ‘Oh, this one is an NPP judge,’ ‘Oh, this one is NDC,’ and yet you have never seen the person at any party’s rally or on political platforms.”
“These are some of the unnecessary pressures that are put on the judiciary. What difference will that label make to me, my career, and my work?… Sometimes it gets to you,” she added.
These accusations were made by Mahama at the third annual NDC lawyers’ conference in Akosombo, where he asserted that the NPP had stacked the courts with judges who shared their political views.
If the NDC wins the elections in 2024, he advised NDC lawyers to be ready to be appointed to the bench to restore balance.
President Nana Akufo-Addo criticized Mahama’s remarks, calling them “very dangerous” and a “brazen attack on the independence of the judiciary.”
The Ghana Bar Association (GBA) disagreed with the president’s strategy but shared concerns about the judiciary’s independence.
According to the GBA, the best way to safeguard judicial independence is to guarantee that all politicians, irrespective of their partisanship, uphold the rule of law and the separation of powers.
