19 hours Ago By Ghana News
The Supreme Court justices sitting on the case challenging process for removal of the Chief Justice The only obstacle to the processes for the removal of Chief Justice Torkornoo appears to be an injunction filed by the Member of Parliament (MP) for Old Tafo, Vincent Ekow Assafuah. In his suit, the MP accused President John Dramani Mahama of failing to follow constitutional procedures for the removal of a Chief Justice upon receiving a petition. Ekow Assafuah is seeking a court declaration that President Mahama’s failure to adhere to this constitutional requirement, and his decision to forward the petitions to the Council of State for further action, is null, void, and of no effect.
As the case progresses, five justices of the Supreme Court have been empanelled to hear it. These justices will determine whether the ongoing processes for the removal of their boss, Chief Justice Torkornoo, who may have appointed them to the panel, provided she did not recuse herself due to her involvement in the suit, are legal. Below are brief profiles of the justices: Her Ladyship Justice Prof.
Henrietta Mensa-Bonsu: Justice Prof. Henrietta Mensa-Bonsu is the chairperson of the five-member panel overseeing the case to halt the ongoing processes for the removal of Chief Justice Torkornoo. Prior to her appointment to the Supreme Court, she was a law professor and served as a member of the United Nations Independent Panel on Peace Operations.
Prof. Mensa-Bonsu was a senior law lecturer at the University of Ghana School of Law. She became a full lecturer at the university in 2002, and in 2003, she was elected as a fellow of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences.
She later became the Academy’s President in 2019. Justice Mensa-Bonsu was nominated by former President Nana Akufo-Addo in May 2020 and was subsequently approved by Parliament after receiving recommendations from the Appointments Committee. His Lordship Justice Ernest Yao Gaewu: Yao Gaewu, nominated by Akufo-Addo, served as a constituency chairman and parliamentary candidate for the New Patriotic Party in the Ho West and Ho Central constituencies.
He resigned from politics after being appointed as a High Court judge in September 2020. He was sworn into office as a Supreme Court justice in April 2023, becoming the first judge to be appointed to the Supreme Court directly from the High Court since 1980. His Lordship Justice Richard Adjei-Frimpong: Justice Adjei-Frimpong was nominated by President Akufo-Addo together with two other judges (Henry Anthony Kwofie and Yaw Darko Asare), who were then Court of Appeal judges.
He was sworn into office on January 3, 2024. He holds several accolades, including the S.Y.
Bimpong-Buta Award for Best Student in the Interpretation of Deeds and Statutes in 1998, as well as an Award for Patriotic Service to the Country and Humanity in 2019. His Lordship Justice Yaw Darko Asare Justice Darko Asare was sworn into office by President Akufo-Addo on January 3, 2024. Justice Darko Asare established the Beulah Chambers in 2002, where he served as the head until 2019.
On December 17, 2019, he was appointed as a justice on the Court of Appeal by Akufo-Addo. He also previously worked as a guest lecturer at the University of Ghana School of Law. His Lordship Justice Samuel Kwame Adibu-Asiedu Justice Samuel Kwame Adibu-Asiedu was sworn in by Akufo-Addo on December 28, 2022, after his nomination in July 2022.
Justice Adibu-Asiedu became a justice of the High Court in 2006, adjudicating at the Fast Track (Automated) High Court in Accra and the Commercial Court in Accra. He was appointed a justice of the Court of Appeal of Ghana in 2019. He has also had some stints in academia, working as an adjunct lecturer at Wisconsin University and Central University, as well as a senior lecturer at the Ghana School of Law.
BAI/EB Ever heard of a colonial fort with a children’s dungeon and a unique shrine for the slaves? Find out the details with Etsey Atisu as he toured Fort William at Anomabo below:.
