A Professor of constitutional law, Prof. H.K Prempeh, has bemoaned the “deep seated illiberalism” in Ghana’s legal systems.
Some Ghanaians have criticized the law professor for writing a series of articles on the seeming flaws in the Supreme Court’s verdict on the election petition case.
But speaking on Citi FM’s News Analysis Programme, The Big Issue, Mr. Kwasi Prempeh said “the idea that a Court cloaked with judicial power should be impervious to criticism however harshly strikes me as quite odd.”
According to him, the power and authority vested in the Supreme Court and various Judges are not meant for their own benefit or self protection but to enable them administer justice fairly.
“We give judges independence not for their own self protection, independence is a means to an end. We give judges independence so that it would enable them free off pressure from litigants, pressure from forces around outside to administer justice impartially”
“The goal is impartial adjudication and administration of justice, the goal is not independence itself.Independence is a means to an end,” Prof. Prempeh explained.
He decried the increasing spate at which Ghanaians, especially lawyers are “gradually moving in a direction of elevating judges to demi-gods”
“Judges are not our despots. When you look into the Constitution, it says that judicial power emanates from the people. We enthrone them to do justice for us, we do not thereby make them immune to criticism for the work that they produce,” Prof. Prempeh opined.
He also questioned why individuals are dragged to court for their comments against the court, saying “when you are a court sitting on a matter, that anybody external to the court who says anything critical of you stands in contempt, what about those who praise you, are they in contempt too?Or is praise the only thing acceptable for a judge who sits on a matter”
By: Marian Efe Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana
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