President John Dramani Mahama has begun consultations with the Council of State in respect of three petitions seeking the removal of the Chief Justice, Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo.
A statement issued and signed by the Minister for Government Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, in Accra on Tuesday, said the petitions have been forwarded to the Council of State in line with Article 146 of the 1992 Constitution.
Per the provisions of the Constitution, the Council of State is expected to examine the petitions and advise the President accordingly.
Pursuant to clause six of Article 146 of the Constitution, the President, in consultation with the Council, is expected to appoint a five-member committee to determine the fate of Mrs Torkornoo.
The Committee, as provided for by the Constitution, shall consist of two justices of the Supreme Court, one of whom shall be appointed chairman by the President, and three other persons who are not members of the Council, nor members of Parliament, nor lawyers.
“The Committee…shall inquire into the petition and recommend to the President whether the Chief Justice ought to be removed from office,” the Constitution provides in clause seven of Article 146.
All proceedings, the Constitution dictates, shall be heard in camera and the Chief Justice entitled to be heard in her defence by a counsel of her choice.
“The President”, the Constitution stipulates “shall, in each case, act in accordance with the recommendations of the committee”.
Meanwhile, the President, acting in consultation with the Council of State, has the discretion to suspend the Chief Justice by a warrant signed by him, with the petition having been referred to a committee.
This is the second time a petition has been filed seeking the removal of Mrs Torkornoo from office as head of the judiciary.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, as he then was, in January this year, after consultations with the Council of State, dismissed the first petition which sought to remove Mrs Torkornoo from office.
Former President Akufo-Addo held that the petition, filed by Prof. Stephen Kwaku Asare, lacked merit and could not establish prima facie case against Mrs Torkornoo.
Prof. Asare’s petition levelled accusations of misconduct and incompetence, citing alleged panel reconstitution, issuance of practice directions, and constitutional breaches against the Chief Justice
BY JULIUS YAO PETETSI
