CJ suspension: Narrow 3-2 ruling shows our case had merit – Dame on SC decision

L-R: Vincent Assafuah, Gertrude Torkornoo and President John Dramani Mahama

The Supreme Court of Ghana has thrown out the application for the reversal of the suspension of Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo by President John Dramani Mahama.

The five-member panel of the apex court of the land, chaired by the Acting Chief Justice, Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, dismissed the petition filed by the Member of Parliament for Old Tafo, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, by a 3:2 majority decision.

The justices who voted to dismiss the application included Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, Justice Yonny Kulendi, and Justice Amadu Omoro Tanko.

The dissenting judges were Justice Ernest Gyaewu and Justice Henrietta Mensah-Bonsu.

The chairman of the panel announced that the full judgement would be released on May 21, 2025.

Vincent Ekow Assafuah filed a motion at the Supreme Court seeking to halt the suspension of Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Sackey Torkornoo by President John Dramani Mahama.

The application, filed on Thursday, April 24, 2025, requested that the Supreme Court issue an order restraining any further action related to the Chief Justice’s removal under Article 146 until the court has heard and delivered its final ruling on an already pending matter regarding the issue.

Assafuah, through his lawyers, also requested that the court restrain the committee of inquiry established by the president from proceeding with the probe into the petitions filed against the Chief Justice.

In the suit, the lawmaker raised concerns that the petition against the Chief Justice, her subsequent suspension, and the formation of a committee to investigate the matter are “a farce and the product of a pre-conceived orchestration to unconstitutionally remove the Chief Justice from office.”

In documents shared by the Law Platform and sighted by GhanaWeb, Assafuah provided evidence to support his claims, alleging that President Mahama and certain members of his administration had previously launched attacks against the judiciary, particularly the Supreme Court, which the Chief Justice heads, and had consistently expressed intentions to remove Justice Torkornoo from office.

“That other appointees of the President have, in very recent times, expressed a view on the petitions purportedly presented against the Chief Justice and indicated that she will surely be removed. Attached herewith and marked as Exhibit ‘F’ is a publication of a recent statement by the Deputy Director of Operations at the Office of the President and Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr Mustapha Gbande, in which he stated that the Chief Justice will be removed.

“That following the purported suspension of the Chief Justice and the composition of a committee to inquire into the three petitions against her, statements made by other appointees of the President show that the President’s decision was part of machinations by the NDC Government to control and interfere with the independence of the judiciary. Attached herewith and marked as Exhibit ‘G’ is a copy of a publication by the Deputy Director of Elections and Information Technology of the NDC, Dr Rashid Tanko-Computer, in which he stated that the NDC was pleased with the suspension of the Chief Justice,” excerpts from the application filed read.

Before the judgment of the court on Tuesday, May 6, 2025, the decision to reconstitute the panel which presided over the case faced strong opposition from former Attorney General Godfred Dame, who is also the legal representative for Vincent Ekow Assafuah.

Dame objected to the panel’s reconstitution, according to GhanaWeb’s legal affairs correspondent, George Ayisi, arguing that Acting Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, now presiding over the case, is directly affected by the outcome and, therefore, should not lead the proceedings.

However, Deputy Attorney General Justice Srem Sai countered that the argument was based on a misconception of personal benefit to the Acting Chief Justice, which, he said, did not exist.

After a brief deliberation, the court unanimously overruled Dame’s objection, affirming that the new panel, chaired by Justice Baffoe-Bonnie, would proceed with the hearing.

The panel was reconstituted due to changes in the composition of the bench, with some justices now serving on the Chief Justice Removal Committee and others being replaced.

The original panel, which was presided over by Prof Henrietta Mensah-Bonsu, included Samuel Asiedu (now on the removal committee), Ernest Gaewu (who retains his place on the new panel), Yaw Asare Darko, and Richard Adjei Frimpong—both of whom have been replaced.