The Deputy General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Haruna Mohammed, has accused the Chief Justice, Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, of making a political statement while commenting on the financial performance of State-owned institutions during a visit.
Speaking on the KeyPoints on TV3, Mr Mohammed said the Chief Justice, as head of the Judiciary, is not an ordinary citizen and must therefore exercise caution when expressing views on political and governance matters.
He questioned why the Chief Justice was visiting State-owned institutions when the Judiciary faces challenges, including the need for vehicles and infrastructure to administer justice.
Mr Mohammed also cited the Code of Conduct for Judges and Magistrates, arguing that the Chief Justice’s comments could raise concerns about judicial impartiality, particularly because some government policies and initiatives could eventually come before the courts.
“The Chief Justice made a political statement,” he said on September 5.
He further argued that the manner in which the comments were delivered appeared to justify the government’s performance and make comparisons between administrations.
Mr Mohammed therefore called on the Chief Justice to retract the comments and apologise to Ghanaians, or resign from office.
“He should retract, then apologise to the good people of Ghana or resign,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Judicial Secretary, Mr Musah Ahmed, has explained that the comments made by the Chief Justice were made without malice.
This is contained in a press release dated September 4.
“The Chief Justice has taken note of the mixed public reaction to some observations he made recently on the performance of State-owned entities during an outreach engagement.
The observations were made in good faith, and were not intended to serve a purpose inimical to judicial independence,” Mr Ahmed wrote.
By Christabel Success Treve
