The Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Godfred Yeboah Dame has raised concerns over what he describes as unjustified attacks on Ghana’s Judiciary by former President John Dramani Mahama.
Mr. Dame says the unwarranted utterances dent the image of the judiciary, a development that threatens the peace and well-being of the country.
“It was a great dismay and embarrassment that, I heard a person who has occupied the highest office of state that is the former President recently launched an unwarranted attack on the integrity of Ghana’s Judiciary. I observe that, this was the latest instalment of systematic attack by the former President, albeit unjustified”.
The Attorney General who was addressing lawyers at the Ghana Bar Association Annual Conference in Ho said well-meaning Ghanaians ought to call out the former president, lest his conduct derails Ghana’s democratic growth.
“I am compelled to comment on same in this address because they border on the security of the state and constitute a deliberate pattern of conduct aimed at undermining the independence of the Judiciary, an arm of government whose autonomy is crucial to its proper functioning”.
“Such conduct is clearly deplorable, coming from one who has occupied the highest office of President and aspires again to that office. At this moment, it is important for all to note that I express this sentiment not because I stand in opposition to former President Mahama as a politician”, Mr. Dame said.
Recently, John Dramani Mahama called for a change in the leadership of the country’s judiciary to repair what he describes as its broken image.
Mr. Mahama stated, the current state of the judiciary has sunk so low that it has lost the trust and faith of the ordinary person.
“So badly has the image of our Judiciary deteriorated that many of our citizenry openly make mockery of our justice system and of our justices. The phrase ‘Go to Court’ is these days met with derisive laughter, instead of hope that one will truly get justice”.
“There is therefore the urgent need for the Ghanaian Judiciary to work to win the trust and confidence of the citizenry, and erase the widely held perception of hostility and political bias in legal proceedings at the highest courts of the land”, the former President suggested.
Mr. Mahama was addressing the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Lawyers’ Conference.
There, he mentioned, the current leadership of the Judiciary lacks the qualities to redeem its sunken image, hence the need for a new Chief Justice.
“Unfortunately, we have no hope that the current leadership of our Judiciary can lead such a process of change. We can only hope, that a new Chief Justice will lead the process to repair the broken image that our Judiciary has acquired over the last few years”.
