By News Desk
President, Nana Akufo-Addo has nominated Supreme Court judge Justice Anin Yeboah as the new Chief Justice of Ghana.
The President has forwarded the name of Justice Yeboah to Parliament, as required by Article 144 (1) of the 1992 Constitution.
“In order to avoid a vacuum in the office of the Chief Justice following her retirement, I decided to initiate the processes for the appointment of her successor. To that end, a letter dated 2nd December 2019, pursuant to Article 144 (1) of the Constitution, I consulted with the Council of State on my nominee, Mr. Justice Anin Yeboah, who has been at the Supreme Court for the last 11 years and 5 years on the Court of Appeal prior to that, to succeed Chief Justice Akuffo.”
The letter continued, “The Council of Elders have notified me by letter under the hand of the Chairperson, dated 11th December 2019, of the successful completion of the consultation process. Thus, in accordance to Article 144 (1) of the Constitution, I write to inform you that I have nominated Justice Anin Yeboah for approval by Parliament as the next Chief Justice. I’m fully satisfied that Justice Anin Yeboah is qualified and eminently fit to occupy the office of Chief Justice.”
The First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joe Osei Owusu, announced the President’s nominee in the House yesterday with Justice Yeboah expected to face the Appointments Committee soon.
Joe Osei Owusu also read a speech on behalf of President Akufo-Addo who said he was fully confident in Justice Anin Yeboah’s capacity to ’eminently’ occupy the office of Ghana’s Chief Justice.
The President also disclosed that he consulted the Council of Elders prior to the nomination of Justice Anin Yeboah.
Meanwhile, Attorney General Gloria Akuffo has backed Chief Justice Nominee, Justice Anin-Yeboah.
“I think he is a good pick,” she told JoyNews’ Kwesi Parker Wilson in an interview minutes after his appointment was announced, Thursday.
Extolling the Supreme Court judge, Madam Akuffo said Anin-Yeboah has worked long enough to be familiar with the demands of the position.
The A-G said she has “followed his career with interest and he is not only strong in the law but his morals are also strong.”
She also expressed confidence that Justice Anin-Yeboah could stand up to the challenges of being Chief Justice, including the raging issues with admission to the Ghana School of Law.
About the new Chief Justice nominee
Justice Anin Yeboah is currently the fourth longest-serving Justice of the Supreme Court.
A graduate of the Ghana School of Law in 1981, he was appointed to the Supreme Court by President John Agyekum Kufuor in June 2008. Prior to that, he had served as a Justice of the High Court from 2002 to 2003 and a Justice of the Court of Appeal from 2003 to 2008.
Apart from being a Supreme Court Justice, Justice Anin Yeboah is also a part-time lecturer in Civil Procedure and the Ghana Legal System at the Ghana School of Law.
Anin Yeboah’s legal experience includes writing judgments in constitutional matters, civil and criminal cases and providing opinions on legal matters in the West African nation.
Justice Anin Yeboah’s name is also closely associated with football. In May 2017, he was appointed the Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee of the Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA).
In September 2019, named onto the CAF/FIFA Reform Implementation Taskforce team for African football, he was appointed along with five others to carry out reforms within African football.
He also served as the Chairman of the Appeal’s Committee of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) from 2004 to 2008.
