5 of the 7 Supreme Court justice nominees of President John Dramani Mahama
Dr Ekua Amoako, a member of the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Communications Team and the party’s 2024 manifesto spokesperson on health, has questioned President John Dramani Mahama’s decision to appoint seven new Supreme Court justices.
Taking to social media on May 2, 2025, Dr Amoako shared a video of Mahama during his campaign period in which he advocated for a reduction in the number of Supreme Court judges.
In her post, she wrote, “So what has changed, Mr. President? Why are you, in an unprecedented move, appointing as many as seven more justices to the existing 13, increasing the number of Supreme Court justices to 20, when the Ghanaian people are yet to decide? Where are your principles?”
Her remarks follow President Mahama’s recent nomination of seven new justices to the Supreme Court, in line with Article 144(2) of the 1992 Constitution, which grants the president authority to appoint justices to the highest court in the land.
The announcement, made in a letter dated April 29, 2025, and signed by Secretary to the President Callistus Mahama, was described as part of ongoing efforts to uphold the independence and efficiency of Ghana’s judiciary.
The nominated justices are expected to undergo a review by the Judicial Council, which will advise the president before the nominees are vetted by Parliament to determine their suitability for the bench.
Meanwhile, during his campaign period, Mahama pledged to revive the constitutional review process to establish a cap on the number of Supreme Court justices if he is re-elected.
Under Ghana’s 1992 Constitution, the Supreme Court must have at least nine justices, including the Chief Justice, but no upper limit is specified. Addressing the media in Accra on July 7, Mahama stated his commitment to letting Ghanaians decide on the matter.
“We will resurrect the constitutional review process when I become president, and when we do that, we will put it to the Ghanaian people whether we should retain the 15, whether we should reduce it, or whether we should increase it,” he said.
Mahama also expressed his disagreement with Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo’s recommendation for the then-president to appoint five additional justices to the Supreme Court.
“I can’t understand why the Chief Justice is the one recommending which judges to appoint,” Mahama remarked.
“The constitution is clear that it is the president who appoints judges with the advice of the Judicial Council. The initiative to appoint judges must come from the president and be submitted to the Judicial Council, which then provides advice before forwarding the nominations to Parliament. That is the procedure,” he emphasized.
*So what has changed Mr. President? Why are you, in an unprecedented move, appointing as many as 7 more Justices to the existing 13 to move the number of Supreme Court Justices to 20 when the Ghanaian people are yet to so decide? Where are your principles?* pic.twitter.com/RCj1AFhmAb
— Dr Ekua Amoakoh (@DrEAmoakoh) May 2, 2025
AM/KA
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