Retired Supreme Court Justice William Atuguba has criticised the New Patriotic Party (NPP), accusing the party of manipulating the judiciary as a political shield rather than genuinely upholding justice in the case involving the suspended Chief Justice, Gertrude Torkornoo.
Speaking in an interview on Joy News, monitored by GhanaWeb on Wednesday, May 7, 2025, Justice Atuguba dismissed the NPP’s resistance to the judicial proceedings as a calculated act of self-preservation rather than a principled defense of due process.
“You have been overthrown through the ballot. Now your final defence is the Chief Justice? You say, ‘If she falls, we all fall.’ That’s what they are fighting for. It’s not about justice, it’s about survival.
“When they [the NPP] were in office, how did they perform? Transparently? Neutrally? In the interest of the people? This is the kind of thing I just hate, pure hypocrisy,” he stated.
On Monday, May 7, 2025, the NPP and a coalition of political parties took to the streets to protest the suspension of the Chief Justice. The coalition accused the government of interfering in the judiciary.
Following the determination of a prima facie case in three separate petitions seeking the removal of Gertrude Sackey Torkornoo from office, President John Dramani Mahama suspended her and established a five-member committee to inquire into the matter.
In the interim, Supreme Court Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie has assumed the role of acting Chief Justice.
His appointment is in accordance with Article 144(6) of the 1992 Constitution, which states that the most senior Justice of the Supreme Court shall act as Chief Justice when the position becomes vacant or the substantive Chief Justice is unable to perform their duties.
JKB/MA
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