Don’t demand money before granting bail - Chief Justice cautions judiciary

The Chief Justice, Mrs Justice Georgina Theodora Wood, has pledged to punish members of the Judiciary who demand money to facilitate the granting of bail to accused persons.

She pointed out that the ‘granting of bail is free.’

This is one of the measures being put in place by the Chief Justice to repair the dented image of the judiciary after the recent Afro-barometer report ranked it as one of the most corrupt public institutions in the country.

In a message read on her behalf by Justice Dennis Adjei, an Appeal Court Judge, at the inauguration of the first Sanitation Court in Kumasi Monday, Mrs Wood reiterated that the granting of bail should not be used as a gold mine to enrich individual pockets.

Sanitation Court

The court was established by the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) at Asokwa, a suburb of Kumasi, and has  been  handed over to the Judicial Service. 

This is the fourth district court in Kumasi.

The two-room court is expected to be expanded to four rooms by the close of the year to ease the pressure on other districts, especially Ash Town.

More courts

The Chief Justice appealed to the KMA to ensure that all sub-metros had courts. According to her, the establishment of more courts, especially in areas such as Tafo, Kwadaso and Santasi,  would make justice easily accessible to the people.

Mrs Justice Wood also appealed to lawyers in the Ashanti Region to handle at least one case on a pro bono basis as their service to the underprivileged.  

The court will begin adjudicating sanitation cases after Saturday’s National Sanitation Day exercise.