'You praised Chief Justice on galamsey comment, why call him partisan now?' – Hamza quizzes NPP

A member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) communication team, Hamza Suhuyini, has defended Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie against criticism over his recent comments praising the performance of some state-owned enterprises (SOEs).

The Chief Justice has come under intense criticism over his remarks during a working visit to the Mineral Income Investment Fund (MIIF) on Wednesday, September 2.

The Chief Justice had commended MIIF for what he described as its impressive turnaround compared to the previous administration.

He said the performance of some state institutions under the current administration had made him question what had been done over the previous eight years.

The comments have attracted criticism from sections of the public who argue that the reference to the previous eight years carries a political undertone and could create an impression of bias on the part of the head of the Judiciary

However, speaking on Accra-based JoyNews' AM show on Thursday, Hamza said the Chief Justice, like any other Ghanaian citizen, had the right to express his views on national issues.

According to him, the critics, particularly the New Patriotic Party (NPP), are being hypocritical by questioning the Chief Justice’s comments after previously praising him for speaking publicly about the fight against illegal mining.

“It was this same group of people, NPP, who not long ago were in town praising the Chief Justice, the same Chief Justice, on his open statements on the fight against galamsey. Have you forgotten? He became their reference point of how this government is not committed to the fight against galamsey," he noted.

According to him, the Chief Justice had demonstrated a leadership style that goes beyond the strict functions of his office, including engaging state institutions to understand their operations and build relationships.

He argued that the criticism would only be justified if those challenging the Chief Justice could demonstrate that his assessment of the performance of state institutions was factually incorrect.

“There’s absolutely nothing wrong with what he has done. Indeed, beyond the core functions of the Chief Justice, inherent in it is for the Chief Justice to build relationships, to establish workable relationships with other state entities," he asserted.