Leader,
Alexander
Afenyo-Markin
Advertisement
The
minimum
number
of
Supreme
Court
judges
as
set
out
in
the
1992
constitution
is
evidence
of
the
fact
that
the
framers
of
the
constitution
in
their
wisdom
had
anticipated
that,
there
would
be
a
future
need
to
increase
the
number
of
judges
in
the
Supreme
Court,
the
Majority
Alexander
Afenyo-Markin
has
said.
To
that
end,
he
says
the
Supreme
Court
must
be
allowed
to
go
through
reformation
through
expansion
in
terms
of
numbers.
This
is
the
reason
why,
they
settled
on
a
minimum
number
and
not
a
maximum
number
as
provided
for
in
the
1992
constitution
of
the
Republic
of
Ghana,
he
said.
Afenyo-Markin
further
explained
that
the
decision
of
the
Chief
Justice
of
the
Republic
of
Ghana,
Gertrude
Torkornoo
to
recommend
five
Justices
for
appointment
to
the
Supreme
Court
comes
on
the
back
of
multiple
cases
the
Supreme
Court
is
always
saddled
with.
He
explained
that
Ghana’s
Supreme
Court
is
not
being
packed
as
others
would
want
us
to
believe.
“It
is
instructive
to
note
that,
since
independence,
we
have
allowed
institutions
to
grow.
Even
before
2019,
Ghana
had
only
Ten
Regions.
As
we
speak,
we
have
an
additional
six
making
it
sixteen,”
he
said
at
a
press
conference
in
Parliament
on
Monday,
July
8.
His
comments
come
at
a
time
when
the
National
Democratic
Congress
(NDC)
is
accusing
Chief
Justice
Gertrude
Torkornoo
and
President
Akufo-Addo
of
packing
the
Supreme
Court
with
the
recommendation
of
five
Justices
to
be
added
to
the
Supreme
Court
Justices.
The
President’s
recommendation
follows
a
letter
by
the
Supreme
Court’s
Chief
Justice,
Justice
Gertrude
Araba
Esaba
Torkonoo
to
President
Akufo-Addo
requesting
for
the
addition
of
five
more
Judges.
General
Secretary
of
the
NDC,
Fiifi
Fiavi
Kwetey
in
a
press
conference
on
Thursday,
July
4
described
the
recommendation
as
an
affront
to
Ghana’s
democracy.
He
noted
that
President
Akufo-Addo
together
with
the
Chief
Justice
are
conniving
to
impose
a
“direct
threat
to
Ghana’s
Judicial
system.”
“This
isn’t
just
a
political
maneuver
of
an
already
exiting
failed
President;
it’s
an
assault
on
our
democracy,
a
betrayal
of
public
trust.
According
to
the
NDC,
the
addition
of
the
five
Judges
to
the
Supreme
Court
Justices
will
only
contribute
to
creating
“judiciary
that
is
no
longer
a
check
on
executive
power,
but
a
mere
extension
of
it.”
“This
is
not
the
Ghana
our
forefathers
fought
for;
this
is
not
the
democracy
we
pledged
to
uphold.
Our
nation
deserves
better,
and
it
is
our
duty
to
stand
up
and
protect
the
very
foundations
of
our
democratic
society,”
Fiifi
Kwetey
stated.
But
the
Majority
Leader
who
is
also
lawmaker
for
Effutu
said
“The
argument
by
the
NDC
that
our
Supreme
Court
is
being
packed
or
heaped
is
untenable
having
regard
to
its
multifaceted
jurisdictions
unlike
the
United
States
and
U.K.
To
conclude,
I
wish
to
state
that,
the
apex
court
of
our
land
must
be
allowed
to
go
through
reformation
through
expansion
in
terms
of
numbers.
“This
is
because,
the
minimum
number
of
Supreme
Court
judges
as
set
out
in
the
1992
constitution
is
evidence
of
the
fact
that,
the
framers
of
the
constitution
in
their
wisdom
had
anticipated
that,
there
will
be
a
future
need
to
increase
the
number
of
judges
in
our
Supreme
Court,
this
is
the
reason
why,
they
settled
on
a
minimum
number
and
not
a
maximum
number
as
provided
for
in
the
1992
constitution
of
the
Republic
of
Ghana.”
Read
his
full
address
here