Private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu has renewed calls for sweeping constitutional reforms to protect Ghana’s judiciary from political influence, following the recent removal of Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo.
Appearing on Accra-based station on Monday, September 1, Kpebu voiced deep concerns over the powers vested in the President by Article 144 of the 1992 Constitution, which gives the executive authority to appoint the Chief Justice.
“To give judicial independence, we had started making a lot of noise, advocating since last year when her letter to Akufo-Addo came out,” he noted. “In the Constitution, we don’t want the President to be the one to appoint the CJs under Article 144. We don’t want it, so we want 144 out.”
Kpebu argued that removing presidential influence from the appointment process is essential to ensuring that the judiciary remains impartial and free from political pressures. In addition to reforms to Article 144, he called for a more transparent and structured approach to handling allegations of judicial misconduct.
“One of the things we should do is that we should be able to categorise—to know what are serious offences and what are minors,” he said. Without clear guidelines, Kpebu warned, there is a real risk that minor infractions could be punished as severely as serious breaches, potentially resulting in disproportionate outcomes such as removal from office.
Kpebu’s remarks have further fueled public debate about the need to review constitutional provisions affecting the separation of powers and the independence of Ghana’s key democratic institutions.
Source: Apexnewsgh.com
