Ghana's Weak Justice System: Should The People Choose Supreme Court Judges?

Without a doubt, Ghana's judiciary is among the worst in all of West Africa, and this has had a negative impact on the infrastructure of the country. It's not an exaggeration to claim that the judiciary has been weak under both the NDC and the NPP for years, allowing high-ranking officials or politicians to embezzle funds and commit crimes without consequence. Since the president's appointment of Supreme Court justices has proven harmful to the people, should Ghanaians elect judges by ballot?

Ghanaians have not had a strong judicial system under either the NPP or the NDC governments, and despite the nation still reeling from the effects of pervasive corruption and money laundering, no one has been held responsible for their crimes. However, it is common to witness impoverished individuals, such as goat, chicken, or cable thieves, receiving sentences of up to ten years in prison. Thus, the lack of jailing political thieves has increased corruption among Ghanaian judges at the Supreme Court.

Akufo-Addo appointed more judges to the court than any other Ghanaian leader, and all of the judges, including former Chief Justice Kwasi Anin-Yeboah and the current suspended Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, defined and revealed their backgrounds as judges who are only interested in serving the president or the party the president leads, not Ghanaians. This politicized judiciary service is the reason behind Torkornoo's demise, but she is struggling to keep her job.

Gertrude Torkornoo and Kwasi Anin-Yeboah both believe that serving the president and his party is more important than serving Ghanaians because doing so also may benefit the opposition NDC. Thus, under Akufo-Addo's leadership, the two judges routinely violated the Constitution and abused their positions. Matters that benefit the ruling party, the NPP, are promptly settled, while cases filed by the opposition, the NDC, are left in court to wait for the dust to settle on its files.

Gertrude Torkornoo, like Kwasi Anin-Yeboah, has no respect for Ghanaians, despite the fact that she receives her income and benefits from taxpayers. The partisan chief justice's decision in support of the NPP was the cause of Akufo Addo's arrogance, disregard for Ghanaians, and pervasive corruption with no consequences. If judges were chosen by the general public, would things have turned out differently? I believe that a judge chosen by the public would be scared to serve as a responsible judge.

Politicians frequently lose sight of the fact that the people own power and begin acting in ways that solely serve their own interests. Akufo-Addo, Bawumia, Ken Ofori-Atta, Gertrude Torkornoo, Bryan Acheampong, Godfred Dame, Jean Mensa, and many NPP politicians underestimated the power of the people and perpetrated numerous crimes against them because they believed they would be in power indefinitely. As a result, the NPP lost the 2024 election.

A genuine chief justice serves the people, not politicians or a political party. The US legal system is regarded as the most professional and equitable in the world. They continue to uphold their great reputation, which dates back several centuries. The state district courts, whose judges are directly elected by the populace, are the cornerstone of the US legal system. That’s why in Ghana, the idea that judges can be elected by the people should prioritize the democratic values.

In my opinion, if Ghanaians go to the polls to elect their president, then they should have the option to choose the chief justice and the head of the Electoral Commission to avoid partisan service and corruption.