Di Chief Justice wia Ghana president don suspend don speak out for di first time since dem begin impeachment processes against her.
Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, wey be chief Justice since 2023, chop suspension afta at least three separate pipo file petition to president John Mahama say make dem remove am from office.
Di president afta im receive di three petitions forward dem to di council of state wia suppose study di petition and determine whether she gat case to answer based on dis allegations for di petitions.
Na so di council advise di president say di CJ get cases to answer wia president Mahama sign warrant to suspend her from office.
Di president also set up five-member committee say make dem investigate di petitions and hear di side of di chief Justice.
Afta di committee finish dia hearings, dem go recommend whether di allegations dey strong enough to remove her from office or not.
Since di committee begin to dey hear di matter on 15 May 2025, di suspended chief Justice and oda lawmakers don carry di case go di supreme court say make dem stop di process and declare am illegal.
But di Supreme Court for all di five cases, don dismiss di mata wia dem tok say di 5-member panel neva do anytin wrong so far for di impeachment process.
Goment bin tok say dem only dey follow di constitution wia don provide di process to remove chief Justice and oda commissioners.
Di law tok say di panel hearings gatz dey behind closed doors but since di beginning, some of di tins don leak.
Na so goment warn di suspended chief Justice say make she no leak di content of di petition wia di president don send give her to respond.
But inside supplementary affidavit wia di suspended chief Justice don file for di Supreme Court, di CJ tok say di 5-member panel don dey abuse her rights na so she wan make di court stop di process.
Di Supreme Court bin dismiss her affidavit by majority decision say she dey carry tins wey dey happun behind closed doors for di panel into di public, against di law.
Afta more than one month of di panel hearing, di suspended chief Justice don address press conference wey she tok say di whole process na “staged tin to remove her from office.”
Some of di tins di suspended CJ tok
Di panel don abuse my rights for di hearing
“I bin apply to di Supreme Court say make dem scrap di provision wey say make di hearing dey behind closed door, and make dem do am for public, but di court no gree,” Justice Gertrude Torkonoo tok.
.Di committee no gree recognize her lawyer on di first day of di proceedings sake of she herself no dey there, wia dem fix hearing dates and oda arrangements without her lawyer even though im bin dey di premises dat day
.Di committee fail to establish di specific allegations wia cause di prima facie case to be established against her so say she fit prepare her defence even though di president already bin give her di three petitions for di beginning of di mata
.Di committee decide say two of di petitioners no go testify so say she fit cross -examine dem about dia petitions
.Dem search her body and her handbag in violation of courtesies for chief Justice for di kontri
.Di hearings dey happun for one high security zone for di castle road instead of di judicial service premises. According to di suspended CJ, dem bin dey do di committee hearing for dia to intimidate her
‘Di allegations against me neva be true’
Di suspended chief Justice also state some of di allegations inside di petitions wia she tok say dem neva be enough grounds to remove her from office
“I neva make any decision for di court on my own, di decisions by di Supreme Court na court decision even if I bin dissent wit my view.”
She add say “di chairman of di panel wey dey hear di mata na Supreme Court judge wey also bin on top one case wey involve di petitioner dey raise conflict of interest.”
“Dem bin accuse me say I carry my husband and my daughter to go for vacation outside di kontri two times, wia I use state moni, but for dis two vacation wia I bin dey within di judicial service conditions of service,” Gertrude Torkornoo explain.
“Di conditions provide say di CJ gat to travel wit at least one pesin everytime, na so I choose to travel wit my husband and daughter on different occasions – for those trips, we even return some of di per diem up to $9.6K two days afta I don return afta I bin spend only $4,400 out of di $14,000 dem carry give me.”
On di allegation say she bin write to di former president Nana Akufo-Addo say make im appoint five new judges to di Supreme Court for 2024, without consulting di judicial service, di Ghana bar association and oda groups; di suspended CJ say she neva do anitin wrong.
‘I no go resign, I go fight dis mata’
Di suspended chief Justice tok say pipo don tok am say make she resign sake of di wahala don plenty wia di Supreme Court don also dismiss five cases against di impeachment process.
But Gertrude Torkonoo say she neva go resign.
“My loved ones and oda pipo bin dey call me say make I resign so say dem go stop to dey drag me for dis mata, but if I resign, e go send wrong signal say when I gatz to stand up for di law, I run away.”
Justice Torkonoo further add say “even tho pipo bin dey threaten me wia some dey tok say if I comot dis mata and still remain chief Justice, dem go make I suffer, I go still pursue di mata.”
“I neva go Sidon make dis flawed and opaque process to stand wia I no go tok. If I no tok, dis calculated process to achieve political agenda based on false claims, go become precedent for Ghana,”
Also “for my ova 30 years of practise as a lawyer, and ova 20 years as a judge for dis kontri, I neva collect bribe bifor, na so my integrity dey intact.”
Goment respond to di suspended Chief Justice press conference
Goment don address counter press conference afta di chief Justice im press conference wia dem tok say some of di tins di CJ tok, no be true.
Tok tok pesin for di goment Felix Kwakye Ofosu say “di venue for di panel hearing (Edu Lodge) na goment facility wia di committee vim request to use di area to prevent leaking of tins during di committee hearings.”
“To tok say di venue dey calculate to intimidate her na unfair to di goment, wia di venue gat no link wit wetin she tok say na di Venue dem plan wia dem kill three judges in 1981, as di chief Justice tok.”
Oga Felix Ofosu Kwakye him add say “nobody fit point to one step wia di president don follow so far dey against di constitution, na di CJ wia don breach di law when she carry di mata enta public against di law.”
For di mata about threats to her life, Felix Kwakye Ofosu tok say di CJ sabi wia she gatz to report issues of threat, no be di media, na di police.
Already sabi pipo bin suggest say di suspended chief justice day in contempt; as she carry di mata enta public when di law say make di panel hearing and di details of di petitions dey “in-camera”.
Odas tok say wetin she gate do na to go thru di hearing process and afta if she think say she no free wit di recommendations of di committee, she fit to challenge di mata for court.
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