Veteran journalist and former member of the Judicial Council, Elizabeth Ohene, has condmned the removal of Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo, describing it as a “short-term, high-handed enterprise” that will have lasting consequences for Ghana’s democracy.
In a detailed opinion piece titled “The Third Arm of Government” and sighted by Citi News on Monday, September 8, Ohene cautioned: “Something tells me we shall all live to regret this short-term, high-handed enterprise.”
She revealed that some within the judiciary had supported the Chief Justice’s removal on grounds that she was considered “too hard,” but warned:
“Let all such people keep in mind that today it is Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo that is being tossed out, but in truth, the entire judiciary of Ghana, the Third Arm of Government has been fatally undermined.”
Drawing on her experience as a former Judicial Council member, Ohene expressed deep concern about the process and the basis of the removal.
“I was on the Judicial Council when CJ Torkornoo reported to the Council that there had been an Audit finding against her for the purchase of some airline tickets. I was startled,” she disclosed.
She explained that during her time on the Council, extensive discussions were held on judges’ conditions of service, including a travel policy covering per diem rates and entitlements. She questioned how such an issue could later become grounds for removal.
“I assumed that if a new Chief Justice asked for tickets to be purchased for a spouse or a friend, he/she would be briefed by the secretariat on the dos and don’ts, and I was therefore puzzled that an Audit Finding could be made in relation to the purchase of airline tickets. Unless, of course, we had a situation of the Chief Justice, having been briefed that under the conditions of service, she was not entitled and she chose to ignore the advice. None of the three Chief Justices that chaired the Council I served on, was likely to do that.”
She further questioned the petition filed by Daniel Ofori, which reportedly formed the basis of the removal.
“Of the 21 listed items in the petition, I can identify more than 10 as issues that came before the Judicial Council and were exhaustively discussed.”
On the appointment of lawyers and judges as Court Registrars — one of the cited issues — she asked:
“How do these matters now get to be listed as evidence of capricious behaviour or bias on the part of CJ Torkornoo?”
Ohene criticised what she described as double standards, arguing that similar audit findings would never be applied to the Presidency or Parliament.
“I would be very surprised that there would ever be an Audit Finding against a President of the Republic or a Speaker of Parliament for any reason, never mind for having asked for a ticket to be purchased for a spouse to accompany him on a travel. I would have thought that those who care about the separation of powers and who are keen for the judiciary to be accorded the same dignity as the two other arms of government would be keen to have problems within the judiciary, resolved within the judiciary.”
She admitted that Judicial Council proceedings are confidential but justified breaking silence given the gravity of the moment.
“If I am breaking any laws by writing about things that I got to know as a result of having served on the Judicial Council, I plead guilty. We are in extraordinary times. It isn’t every day that a Chief Justice is removed.”
Read also
