Kwaku Ansa-Asare, a former Director of the Ghana School of Law, has described the suspended Chief Justice, Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo’s move to halt her removal process as “unconstitutional.”
He finds it “very worrying” that the suspended CJ would initiate actions undermining the constitution she’s sworn to uphold.
Ansa-Asare cited the 1992 Constitution, emphasising its clarity on who initiates removal proceedings against a Chief Justice once a petition is filed.
According to Kwaku Ansa-Asare, the President has not breached any law thus far, following the establishment of a prima facie case against the suspended Chief Justice.
Ansa-Asare’s remarks follow Chief Justice Torkornoo’s application to the Supreme Court, seeking to restrain the President’s committee investigating the petitions for her removal.
In the suit filed on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, the CJ is requesting an interlocutory injunction to halt the committee’s proceedings pending the case’s final determination.
Additionally, she seeks to bar Justices Pwamang and Adibu-Asiedu from presiding over or participating in the committee’s deliberations.
However, Ansa-Asare argues that this move contravenes constitutional provisions, accusing the Chief Justice and her legal team of attempting to disrupt a process clearly outlined in the law.
“This is a very worrying unfolding story that the Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo will seek to stop the constitutional process. Any application to stop the process will itself be unconstitutional,” he said on Accra-based JoyNews Wednesday, May 21, 2025.
The lawyer explained that the path the CJ and her lawyers have taken is challenging, noting it will be difficult to halt the process.
“It will be a very difficult task for anyone to seek to halt the process. What the lawyers are doing at the moment and what the Chief Justice herself has done is to bark but cannot bite; they are merely barking,” Ansa-Asare averred.
In his explanation, he noted that Article 146 of the 1992 Constitution says only the President has the power to initiate removal proceedings against the Chief Justice, following the receipt of a formal petition.
“The law is that when the application involves the Chief Justice, it is the president and the president alone who may initiate the Chief Justice’s removal process pursuant to the petition to that effect,” he added.
The former Director of the Ghana School of Law further indicated that President Mahama has so far not breached any regulation stated in the constitution.
“The President has not violated any of the chronological stages in the process. Therefore, it will be a very difficult task for anyone to halt it,” he intimated.
Justice Torkornoo files suit at Supreme Court to fight against her removal
