Chairman of the Council of Elders of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in South Africa, Mr. Benjamin Kofi Quashie, has laid the blame for the current suspension of Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo squarely at the feet of former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
Mr. Quashie described the former president’s actions during his tenure as reckless, claiming they laid the foundation for the current crisis surrounding the judiciary led by the Chief Justice.
Mr Quashie made these remarks while speaking in an interview on Accra-based Kessben FM.
According to him, Justice Baffoe-Bonney, who was senior on the bench at the time, was unfairly bypassed in favour of Justice Torkornoo, a move he believes compromised the integrity of the judicial appointment process.
“The Chief Justice brought this upon herself by allowing herself to be used by Nana Addo,” he asserted. “If I were her, I would have resigned long ago and not waited to be suspended.”
Mr. Quashie further alleged that during Akufo-Addo’s presidency, judicial independence suffered, suggesting that at one point, court decisions became predictable due to political interference.
He cited May 9, 2025, as a notable example, claiming the former president dismissed four High Court judges, as well as key public officials including former Electoral Commission Chairperson Charlotte Osei and Auditor-General Daniel Domelevo.
“Not a single voice was raised in protest when these sackings occurred,” he lamented. “Now the same people who stayed silent are up in arms about President Mahama’s decision to suspend the Chief Justice after a prima facie case was established in consultation with the Council of State.”
Describing the current outcry as hypocritical, Mr. Quashie insisted that President Mahama has done no wrong and is simply upholding the Constitution.
He also criticised the legacy of the former president, saying, “Akufo-Addo was an astute lawyer, but he ran state institutions into the ground.”
Mr. Quashie concluded by defending President Mahama’s leadership, stating that the suspension of the Chief Justice was constitutionally justified and grounded in due process.
