According to a top academic at the University of Ghana, Ghanaians’ trust in the judiciary is eroding.
Professor Ransford Gyampo explained that this is owing to the Supreme Court’s unanimity in every ruling involving the state and other parties that come before it.
Is it always the case that when a dispute between the ruling party and those in opposition is taken before a judge, the ruling party has a strong case and the opposition has a highly false one? “Will it always be this this?”
“Clearly, some Ghanaians are losing faith in the judiciary, and this poses a serious national security issue.” “The uniformity with which they make choices in favor of the ruling party generates an impression,” he added. “It may be erroneous, but it creates an image that something is wrong.”
On Wednesday’s JoyNews AM Show, he claimed that it’s possible that good defenses aren’t made and that the judges are always correct.
Prof Gyampo, on the other hand, emphasized that “justice must not only be done,” but also “seen to be done.”
Prof Gyampo explained to broadcaster Benjamin Akakpo that the Supreme Court has two schools of thought – judicial activism and judicial restraint – at its disposal.
According to him, the Supreme Court should not always follow judicial restraint, which requires them to follow the letter of the law.
“You must preserve and have place for judicial activism – where you look at common sense and the implication of the too legalistic application of the law,” he said.
“Why can’t some of the judges, in order to give the idea that we’re not so biased, look at the facts of the case and reach a consensus?” “However, you always vote in favor of the government,” he continued.
Professor Gyampo stated that if the Supreme Court does not change its approach, a “major national security concern” will arise.
“I’ve spoken to so many people who have decided that, given the way things are going, they will not be considering going to court,” he continued.
Meanwhile, Prof Gyampo has urged Ghanaians to believe the National Security Minister’s assertion that the Supreme Court’s continued unanimous decisions will have disastrous ramifications for the country’s security.
Kan Dapaah isn’t a youngster. He is the Minister of National Security. He has access to knowledge that people who criticize him do not. As a Security Minister, he understands who he employs and where he obtains his information.
As a Security Minister, he employs people and understands where he obtains his information, therefore he knows what he’s talking about.”
Mr Kan Dapaah, speaking at a training for judges of the superior courts on the national security policy, said that if the bench is seen to be biased, citizens may be obliged to take the law into their own hands for personal pleasure.
In response, Frank Davies, Chairman of the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Legal Committee, stated the minister’s remarks were out of place because “stating that one political party is in power [thus] the justices should be aware of how they interpret the law is absolutely unfair.”
Prof Gyampo believes that if Mr Kan Dapaah falls asleep, “we will all be in danger.”
As a result, he urged the public to refrain from “offering partisan justifications and opposition to everything.” “On some of these issues, there should be an elite agreement,” he advised.
The Supreme Court’s unanimous rulings
On March 4, 2021, a seven-member panel of Supreme Court Judges unanimously dismissed the election petition submitted by John Dramani Mahama, the 2020 NDC Presidential Candidate.
The reason for this, according to the Supreme Court, is that the matter before it is without merit.
In a unanimous ruling on March 9, 2022, the Supreme Court declared that a Deputy Speaker of Parliament can be considered when forming a quorum for legislative decision-making and voting while presiding.
A case brought against Parliament’s adoption of the budget on November 30, 2021, was also found moot by the Supreme Court on March 16, 2022, in a majority judgment.
The Court indicated that it’s ruling, which established that a Deputy Speaker can vote and be a member of a quorum for decision-making while presiding, addresses this issue.
Broadcaster Richard Dela Sky filed the lawsuit against the Attorney-General, questioning Deputy Speaker Joe Osei-choice Owusu’s to vote in the determination that led to the budget’s ratification while presiding over the House’s proceedings in the absence of the Speaker.
The Supreme Court unanimously dismissed an application filed by Assin North MP James Gyakye Quayson on April 5, 2022.
This was a request for the Supreme Court to overturn its March 8 decision ordering the legislator to file his defense in a case seeking to prevent him from executing his parliamentary duties.
The Supreme Court will decide whether Assin North MP may continue to serve in the legislature.
The Supreme Court will decide today, April 13, whether James Gyakye Quayson, the MP for Assin North, may continue to represent his people in Parliament.
A resident of the constituency, Michael Ankomah Nimfah, filed the suit before the Supreme Court, claiming that James Gyakye Quayson’s continued tenure in office despite a High Court ruling annulling his election violated Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.
This, he claims, was not fair to the people of Assin North, and he criticizes Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.
