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A revered former justice of the Supreme Court of Ghana, Justice William Atuguba, has justified calls for the appointment of more judges to the Supreme Court citing the overbearing workload and the sizable number of cases compared to the limited number of judges available.
The retired Supreme Court judge highlighting the need for the appointment of more judges, recommended not less than twenty-five (25) judges to be appointed to the country’s superior court in view of the ever-increasing number of cases coming up to the Supreme Court.
The Constitution of Ghana stipulates that the Supreme Court should consist of the Chief Justice and not less than nine other justices however, the exact number can vary over time based on appointments and retirements.
The Supreme Court of Ghana currently consists of 15 justices, including the Chief Justice and it’s worth noting that there is an ongoing discussion about potentially increasing the number of justices.
The Chief Justice, Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo, recently recommended the appointment of five additional justices from the appeals court, which would bring the total number to 20 if approved, a proposal that has sparked some controversy and debate regarding the process and timing of such appointments.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Channel 247’s ERIC AGYARKOH KONNEY,
Justice Atuguba, intimated that the current number of judges at the Supreme Court are overburdened, recounting one occasion where every judge on the bench felt sick as a result of the workload.
According to Justice Atuguba, the bench should ideally have at least 5 panels of five, which would rarely happen due to other engagements and travels that may not allow all judges to be available per time and so four panels of five per time is manageable considering the volume of pending cases, reviews, and appeals.
However, Justice Atuguba opined that in as much as there is the need for the appointment of more judges to the Supreme Court the timing of the call makes it problematic considering the imminent elections.
By: Eric Agyarkoh Konney
Channel 247 TV
Yaw Boagyan
Rafiq Adam
