GBA President raises concerns over lack of clear rules in CJ removal process

President of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), Efua Ghartey, defended the Association’s role in protecting the independence of the judiciary, while raising serious concerns about the procedure used in the removal of a Chief Justice.

Addressing lawyers at the 2025/2026 Annual General Conference of the GBA, Mrs. Ghartey explained that the Constitution places a duty on the Association to safeguard the independence of the courts, a responsibility the Bar has always taken seriously.

She noted that Article 146 of the 1992 Constitution, which deals with the removal of judges, had for the first time in the Fourth Republic been applied to a Chief Justice.

While acknowledging that the Constitution allows for such a process, she stressed that the Bar’s main concern is the absence of clear rules to guide it.

“In the absence of specific rules, the process becomes sketchy and risks being arbitrary and unfair,” she observed.

Mrs. Ghartey recalled that on April 30, 2025, the Association passed a resolution calling for the immediate enactment of comprehensive regulations to ensure fairness, transparency, and accountability in all proceedings under Article 146.

She expressed disappointment that no such rules had been produced since then.

Quoting the well-known principle that “justice must not only be done but must be seen to be done,” she warned that the lack of clear regulations in the removal of such a high-ranking official sets a troubling precedent.

She emphasized that justice must serve everyone equally whether rich or poor, powerful or powerless, those who dispense justice or those who receive it.

By: Jacob Aggrey

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