GBA’s statement on suspension of CJ: History will not forgive us if we let this slide – Vormawor

Oliver Barker-Vormawor, Convener of the Fix The Country Movement and a member of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), has sharply criticized the Association’s recent resolution challenging the President’s suspension of the Chief Justice.

Speaking on KeyPoints on TV3, he described the resolution as politically motivated and designed to sway public opinion rather than uphold the principles of justice.

He argued that the resolution lacks merit and amounts to “an appeal cloaked in impropriety,” adding that its wording fails to meet the standards of a legitimate legal challenge and dangerously imputes misconduct to the President despite clear precedent from the Supreme Court.

Calling on his fellow GBA members to mobilize for a special general assembly to overturn what he calls a reckless move, Barker-Vormawor warned on May 3 that, “History will not forgive us if we let this slide. Internationally and domestically, this resolution could be misread as an indictment on the judiciary’s independence — and that’s dangerous.”

He argues that the GBA is ignoring settled precedent and injecting politics into a matter of law insisting constitutional interpretation must remain grounded in established legal doctrine, not sentiment.

For his part the CEO of the National Petroleum Authority, Godwin Edudzi Tameklo, accused the GBA of what he describes as “manifest hypocrisy” in its recent commentary on judicial appointments.

Mr Tameklo said the GBA’s current stance on nomination of new judges to the Supreme Court directly contradicts the position the Association itself took in 2023 under a previous Chief Justice.

He questioned whether the GBA had conveniently forgotten or deliberately ignored events from the previous year when a similar appointment process occurred under a different administration.

“Is the bar telling me that in 2023, when this circular came, they were not aware? Or were they deeply asleep and are just now up?” he asked rhetorically. “Please, let’s be fair. We are building a democracy. A democracy that should inherently have a semblance of fairness.”

Tamakloe referenced the appointment of Justices Yaw Appau and Gabriel Pwamang to the Supreme Court by then President Mahama.

He noted that at the time, the Judicial Council had recommended four candidates and ranked them.

President John Mahama, however, selected the second and fourth-ranked individuals.

According to Tamakloe, this move drew strong criticism from the GBA, then under the leadership of Nene Amegatcher.

“The bar said because they [the Judicial Council] had recommended, the President is bound… even if he wanted to choose, to choose from one, two, three, or four. And so, he didn’t have the right to do four and two,” he recalled.

He further pointed out that the GBA even went as far as to challenge President Mahama’s decision in the Supreme Court, questioning why the Association only appears vocally concerned when Mahama is the appointing authority.

“How come the bar is only up when President Mahama is the one acting?” he asked.

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