The Supreme Court of Ghana has dismissed an application seeking to overturn the suspension of Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Sackey Torkornoo by President John Dramani Mahama.
A five-member panel, chaired by Acting Chief Justice Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, delivered the ruling on Tuesday, May 6, 2025, in a 3–2 majority decision. The majority—comprising Justices Baffoe-Bonnie, Yonny Kulendi, and Amadu Omoro Tanko —rejected the application filed by Vincent Ekow Assafuah, the Member of Parliament for Old Tafo. Dissenting were Justices Ernest Gaewu and Henrietta Mensah-Bonsu.
The panel chair announced that the full judgment would be released on May 21, 2025.
The application, filed on April 24, 2025, sought to restrain the President and a committee of inquiry from taking further action regarding the Chief Justice's removal under Article 146 of the Constitution, pending the outcome of a related case already before the court.
Through his legal team, Assafuah argued that the suspension and investigation of Chief Justice Torkornoo were politically motivated and constitutionally flawed. He described the ongoing process as “a farce and the product of a pre-conceived orchestration” aimed at unseating the Chief Justice. He submitted evidence, including public statements by presidential appointees, suggesting a deliberate campaign by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government to undermine judicial independence.
Key exhibits included statements from Mustapha Gbande, Deputy Director of Operations at the Presidency, and Dr Rashid Tanko-Computer, Deputy Director of Elections and IT of the NDC, both of whom had publicly expressed support for the Chief Justice’s removal.
Prior to the court’s decision, the reconstitution of the panel itself was challenged by Godfred Dame, former Attorney General and lead counsel for Assafuah. He objected to the involvement of Justice Baffoe-Bonnie, arguing that as Acting Chief Justice, he had a conflict of interest. The court, however, unanimously dismissed the objection, with Deputy Attorney General Justice Srem Sai contending that no personal benefit or conflict existed.
The panel was restructured following changes in the bench's composition, with some justices now serving on the Chief Justice Removal Committee. The original panel—headed by Justice Henrietta Mensah-Bonsu—had included Justices Samuel Asiedu, Ernest Gaewu, Yaw Asare Darko, and Richard Adjei Frimpong. Only Justice Gaewu remained on the newly formed bench.
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