'Baffoe-Bonnie's justification of Ataa Ayi’s 70-year jail term very low' — NPP’s Kamal-Deen
Deputy National Communications Director of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Alhaji Kamal-Deen Abdulai, has taken strong exception to remarks made by Chief Justice nominee, Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, regarding the 70-year jail sentence handed to notorious armed robber Ataa Ayi.
Kamal-Deen described the nominee’s justification for the sentence, which he based on personal fear for his safety, as “very low” and contrary to the core principles of judicial impartiality and fairness.
“I chanced on something when watching the vetting process, and I was appalled. A judge who is supposed to be the head of affairs of the judicial system of our country said he had to give somebody 70 years because he was afraid to die when he came out, he would attack him and his family. I was surprised. That comment was very low,” he said on Channel One TV’s Breakfast Daily on Tuesday, November 11.
He argued that such a statement undermines confidence in the judiciary and contradicts the oath every judge swears to uphold — one that demands fairness, objectivity, and freedom from personal bias.
“Your own judicial oath tells you to ensure that you work within the tenets of the law, and you tell me that for fear you gave somebody 70 years because you didn't want to give 30 years for him to come and attack you? The ratio he gave was flat,” he added.
Justice Baffoe-Bonnie, during his vetting before Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Monday, November 10, defended his decision, explaining that the 70-year sentence was intended to protect the public and deter violent crime. He stressed that sentencing should balance justice with the need to ensure public safety and reflect the severity of the offence.
Ataa Ayi, once Ghana’s most feared armed robber, led a violent gang that operated across Accra and its outskirts in the late 1990s and early 2000s, attacking victims at gunpoint and escaping with vehicles, cash, and other valuables. His arrest in 2005 after a nationwide manhunt and subsequent conviction was seen as a major victory in Ghana’s campaign against armed robbery.
Despite this, Kamal-Deen maintains that the Chief Justice nominee’s reasoning during his vetting raises serious questions about judicial independence and the appropriate exercise of discretion in sentencing.