Member of Parliament for Manhyia South, Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, defended the Minority Caucus’ decision not to participate in the vetting of Acting Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie for the position of substantive Chief Justice.
Speaking on Channel One Newsroom on Monday, November 11, Mr. Baffour Awuah explained that the caucus’ stance was rooted in constitutional prudence and the need to protect the integrity of the judiciary amid ongoing legal proceedings.
According to him, the Minority’s position was based on an active court case challenging the removal of former Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Torkornoo.
He argued that proceeding with the vetting process while the matter remained unresolved could create a constitutional dilemma if the court later found Justice Torkornoo’s removal unlawful.
“This is a case where what is supposed to be decided by the court is whether or not the removal of Justice Torkornoo was lawful. If the court so decides that the removal is not lawful, one of the things that will happen is to reinstate Justice Torkornoo. If there is a successor to Justice Torkornoo that is a substantive successor to Justice Torkornoo, what then happens is that there will be a fundamental question as to whether Justice Baffoe Bonnie, having been so appointed, having gone through the appointment procedure under the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana, should be removed.
It has already been determined in the case of the Ghana Bar Association versus the Attorney General that once a judge is appointed, the only procedure to remove a judge is by way of Article 146 procedure, which does not include an order of the court. Therefore, if the Supreme Court or any court of our land were to so hold that removal of Justice Torkornoo was unlawful, it simply means that it will be unlawful to remove Baffoe-Bonnie unless you go through another Article 146 procedure,” he stated.
Baffour Awuah added that any court ruling declaring Justice Torkornoo’s removal unlawful would therefore complicate the legitimacy of Justice Baffoe-Bonnie’s appointment.
He further described the situation as a “tug-of-war” between the two justices, with serious implications for judicial independence.
“Justice Torkornoo is now battling to remove, in a nutshell, Justice Baffoe-Bonnie from office, so there is really a tug-of-war between the two. Justice Baffoe-Bonnie now has the power to determine who sits on Justice Torkornoo’s case. We all know what has happened. In an acting capacity we all know what is happening to Justice Torkornoo’s case. We can only imagine what will happen in a substantive capacity,” he said.
Minority members of the Appointments Committee boycotted the vetting of Justice Baffoe-Bonnie on Monday, November 10.
Their decision came amid ongoing concerns over the nomination process, which the caucus and sections of the opposition described as a threat to judicial independence and constitutional propriety.
Justice Baffoe-Bonnie, who currently serves as Acting Chief Justice, was nominated to replace Justice Gertrude Torkornoo following her removal from office.
The Minority cited potential conflicts of interest, noting that Justice Baffoe-Bonnie had presided over cases connected to the legal challenge against Justice Torkornoo’s removal. They argued that his involvement in such proceedings undermined public confidence in the judiciary and compromised impartiality. The caucus maintained that the vetting should not proceed until all related cases were resolved.
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