Attempts to remove CJ undermines judicial independence - Deputy Minority Leader

Attempts to remove the Chief Justice from office undermine the independence of the Judiciary, the Deputy Minority Leader in Parliament, Patricia Appiagyei, has stated. 

She said it was not only an assault on the officeholder but the very sanctity of the judicial branch.

“At the same time, the President is seeking to pack the Supreme Court with loyalists—seven nominations in one swoop—clearly designed to bind the hands of the Judicial Council and tilt the highest court in the land towards executive interests,” she said. 

Parliament resumes

Ms Appiagyei stated this in a statement at the commencement of the second meeting of the Ninth Parliament last Tuesday.

Ms Appiagyei also criticised the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, for the closure of Ghana’s embassy in Washington, D.C., for alleged corrupt practices uncovered by a ministerial audit team.

“It is an astonishing and deeply regrettable decision that the government’s response to internal administrative failures is to shut down one of our most important missions abroad, even if only for what they call “a few days.” 

Distress

The MP for Asokwa said the ministry’s decision had already caused confusion and distress to Ghanaians abroad, many of whom rely on the embassy for consular services, visa and passport renewals and critical documentation.

“It sends a dangerous signal to the international community that our government lacks the institutional maturity to isolate wrongdoing without imploding the entire system.

It also fuels perception that Ghana is unstable in its diplomatic governance and unstrategic in managing scandals,” she said.

“We demand to know how and why such a sweeping measure was taken without prior consultation with the House and whether the Council of State, the Cabinet, or even the President’s foreign policy advisory team was involved in any form of deliberation,” she said.

Ablekuma North

On the 2024 parliamentary elections in Ablekuma North, Ms Appiagyei urged the Electoral Commission to declare the results of the Ablekuma North parliamentary contest.

She said five months since the 2024 elections, the people remained without representation even though credible evidence suggested that the NPP candidate won.

“The EC must be supported with security but they must not be allowed to delay democracy,” she added.