GHANA BAR ASSOCIATION (GBA): MAHAMA’S CONCEPT OF ‘NDC JUDGES’ DANGEROUS

GHANA BAR ASSOCIATION (GBA): MAHAMA’S CONCEPT OF ‘NDC JUDGES’ DANGEROUS – PRESIDENT AKUFO-ADDO

The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has urged the Ghanaian people to reject the former President of the Republic and 2024 NDC presidential candidate, John Dramani Mahama, in the 2024 elections.
Speaking at the 2023 Bar Conference of the Ghana Bar Association on Monday, September 11, 2023, the President stated that in some common law countries, particularly in the United States of America, the political color of judges is a legitimate topic of public discourse.
Historically, President Akufo-Addo explained that this has not been the case in Ghana, largely because of the critical, controlling role of the Judicial Council, a non-partisan body chaired by the Chief Justice, in the process of judicial appointments.

The President indicated that he had to go into the matter in some detail because of a new concept that has been recently introduced into our public discourse by no less a public figure than the 4th President of the 4th Republic, the NDC presidential candidate, John Dramani Mahama.
It will be recalled that the former President, at a meeting with NDC lawyers, stated that President Akufo-Addo has packed the courts with so-called “NPP judges”, and that one of the key purposes of a putative NDC victory in 2024 will be to enable him to balance the courts with so-called “NDC judges”.

On corruption, President Akufo-Addo stressed that his administration has fought corruption and not given mere lip service.

President Akufo-Addo stated that it is also an undeniable fact that budgetary allocations for institutions actively engaged in public sector accountability have witnessed unprecedented increases since he assumed office in 2017.
The establishment of the Office of Special Prosecutor, according to President Akufo-Addo, represents the most courageous measure by any government in the 4th Republic to prosecute corruption in the executive arm of government.

Touching on the asset declaration regime as a tool for fighting corruption, the President stated that it is a constitutional requirement that has been fulfilled by virtually all officials of both his administrations.

The Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, used the occasion to harp home the need for legal and judicial integrity in the legal fraternity and urge the lawyers to hold high professional standards.

The Chief Justice, for her part, appealed to the legal community to be guided by the purpose of law, which, according to her, is to build a strong and harmonious society.