Professor Stephen Kwaku Asare, a Ghanaian citizen, has submitted a petition to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo seeking the removal of Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo due to alleged misconduct and incompetence.
In a letter dated December 17, the petitioner referenced Article 146 (1) of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana as the legal basis for his request.
He clarified that his petition concerns alleged misbehaviour and incompetence related to the Chief Justice’s administrative duties as head of the judiciary, which includes its supervision and administration under Article 125 (4) of the Constitution.
Article 146 (1) outlines that a Justice of the Superior Court or a Chairman of a Regional Tribunal can only be removed from office for misconduct, incompetence, or an inability to perform their duties due to physical or mental incapacity.
The petitioner emphasized that his complaint does not relate to the Chief Justice’s judicial responsibilities.
“Accordingly, the petition does not challenge any decisions, orders, or directives issued by the Chief Justice in the performance of her duties as a justice of the Supreme Court, including those made to enforce judgments, decrees, or orders in cases she has adjudicated.”
The petitioner indicated, for instance, that the Chief Justice’s elaborate scheme of requesting the president to appoint specific judges and later presenting the names for the Judicial Council’s approval subverts the constitutional scheme and converts both the council and president into rubber-stamping her preferred judges.
“When the petition is being considered at any stage, members of the Judicial Council will be subpoenaed to testify on the matter,” he added.
The petitioner further noted that there have been reported incidences of the Chief Justice’s direct interference with duly constituted panels with no explanations or public interest reasons for so doing.
“We consider the reconstitution of panels to be beyond the Chief Justice’s administrative power and amounts to a direct interference with the impartiality and independence of duly constituted judicial panels,” he added.
