My removal process a 'mockery of justice' - CJ Torkonoo begs Supreme Court to halt probe

The suspended Chief Justice, Her Ladyship Gertrude Araba Sackey Torkonoo, has passionately urged the Supreme Court to grant an injunction to halt the ongoing investigation into the three petitions seeking her removal from office.

According to her, the process is a deliberate attempt to unjustifiably remove her from office, describing it as a mockery of justice and a ruse.

In a supplementary affidavit filed in support of her motion for an injunction to stop the committee’s proceedings, she accused the five-member committee investigating the petitions of abuse and called on the apex court to prevent what she described as an assault on judicial independence.

In her affidavit, Chief Justice Torkonoo alleged that the committee had sidestepped due process by continuing its proceedings despite a pending interlocutory injunction against the removal process.

ALSO READ: Body search, denial of family access: How CJ Torkonoo was allegedly 'tortured' by removal committee

She noted that although she has yet to receive details of how the prima facie case was established against her, she appeared before the committee on 23 May, where she was subjected to treatment she claims violated her fundamental human rights.

She stated:

That other developments, such as the denial of access to the hearing room for my husband and children, body searches conducted on me, denial of access to telephones and laptops for myself and my lawyers (even though counsel for the petitioners were allowed access to their devices), and the choice to hold the hearing in a high-security zone at the Castle, Osu, show a deliberate effort to subject me to mental torture and degrading treatment in violation of my fundamental rights.

ALSO READ: Supreme Court dismisses Old Tafo MP’s injunction application against CJ removal process

Justice Torkonoo has therefore called on the court to intervene and halt the proceedings, which she asserts constitute a clear assault on judicial independence.

Read Full Story