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Tag: Chief Justice of Ghana

  • It’s our responsibility to sustain Ghana’s democracy – CJ

    It’s our responsibility to sustain Ghana’s democracy – CJ

    According to the Chief Justice, Kwasi Anin-Yeboah, the growth of the judicial service is crucial to advancing Ghana’s democracy.

    According to him, stakeholders and institutions should have confidence in the judiciary and contribute to infrastructure growth to assure quality Judicial Service delivery. 

    He implored local authorities to desist from resolving criminal matters. 

    The event was to inaugurate a new circuit court for the Juaben municipality. 

    The fully furnished Juaben circuit courthouse has all court departments including a docket room, courtroom, bailiff’s office, and secretariat among others.

    The facility will serve at least four communities including Juaben, Effiduase, and Bonwire in the Juaben Municipality. 

    Speaking at the inauguration, Justice Kwasi Anin-Yeboah, explained that it is prudent that Ghanaians have access to quality and timely judicial service.

    “We have a collective duty to ensure that democracy thrives in this country. And this cannot happen without a well-resourced judiciary which is the backbone of rule of law. I want to say it on record, in some places, we have to pay for rent for services provided but it wasn’t so in Juaben. It is prudent that we ensure there is access to justice which goes beyond physical access to court to the quality of service delivery. 

    “I want to entreat Nananom to desist from addressing criminal matters in their palaces and allow the course of the law to apply when people are found wanting…,” he said.  

    The Omanhene of the Juaben traditional area and Council of State Chairperson, Nana Otuo Serebour implored prospective judges to uphold their integrity and be fair in their judgements. 

    “The prospective judicial personnel must judge with fairness so that the people will accept verdicts even when they feel wronged. It is with this fairness the judiciary should work so that the country will develop, and ensure the well-being, of the people. 

    “I will appeal to the prospective judicial personnel to take care of the facility and the bungalow. It is the maintenance culture that will keep the facility working effectively,” he said. 

    We have a collective responsibility to ensure that democracy thrives in this country - CJ

    Three bungalows were additionally handed over to accommodate judges who would be administering justice at the Juaben Circuit Court.

  • My mouth has been ungagged – Sophia Akuffo freely condemns DDEP

    My mouth has been ungagged – Sophia Akuffo freely condemns DDEP

    The immediate-past Chief Justice of Ghana, Sophia Akuffo, has stated that she is able free to share her genuine thoughts without restriction since she no longer occupies a government position.

    Speaking with the media at the forefront of the Ministry of Finance in Accra, Madam Akuffo voiced her displeasure against government’s Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) as she stood with the many pensioners who picketed at the Finance Ministry.

    “Let me see you doing something serious because we’ve seen these sorts of things for a very long time. I’m over 70 now, and I’m no longer a government employee. My mouth has been ungagged and I’m talking and I’m saying what I feel and it is important that, the elderly in this nation…”

    “There are quite a number of people here today, who retired last year, last two years. When they retired, they put everything into government bonds and now all of a sudden, you virtually want to, at gunpoint, force them to agree with you that the repayment of their investment or yields of their investments should be as you dictate it. Why?

    “Why are we in the mess we are in, nobody has fully explained it to us, yes debts, we took debts, what was it used for? Where is the accountability? You are not telling us about how you are going to make things better but just ‘help me and I’ll help you’ no, you help yourself first.

    The immediate-past Chief Justice of Ghana, who was appointed by the sitting president, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, explained that she is there with the pensioners out of solidarity.

    She stated that while she is not going to be affected by the government’s DDEP, she finds it wicked for the government to sacrifice the profits of retirees – people who have sacrificed for Ghana, just so that it is able to solve its own problems in managing the economy.

    “This is just by God’s grace that I’m not included and it’s very heart-breaking to see people of, particularly, this age group – some are a bit older than me, some are somewhat a bit younger than me, but these are all people who have worked, worked very hard. They could have left the country when others were leaving, they left, they stayed, they worked for the nation and we’ve had our ups and downs and everything but bit by bit.

    “A lot of us are from the generation where you were encouraged to save for tomorrow. We’ve been through times when all your savings become nonsense because of some government policy. Then over the years, bit by bit, people have become more confident in the economy, in investments and all that,” she added.

    She stressed that it is unlawful for the government to be pushing this agenda, including profits of pensioners who have invested in bonds.

    “I find this wicked; I find it disrespectful; I find it unlawful; I find it totally wrong. Period. Because you don’t solve your problems by sacrificing your aged. That’s the last thing you should do especially when we don’t have any services that are specially geared at the comfort and the relief of the aged,” she added.

  • Former Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo joins pensioners to protest against DDEP

    Former Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo joins pensioners to protest against DDEP

    Sophia Akuffo, the recently-retired Chief Justice of Ghana, has joined the pensioners picketing in Accra at the Ministry of Finance.

    The pensioners have been picketing at the premises of the ministry since Monday, February 6, 2023, over the government’s plan to involve their bonds in the Domestic Debt Exchange programme.

    Captured in a front-seat position at the premises of the Ministry of Finance, the former Chief Justice has in hand a wooden placard.

    Her placard read: “We use our bond yields to pay our: rents, medical bills, electricity, water bills.”