The Supreme Court has, in a 4–1 majority decision, dismissed a legal challenge brought by the Centre for Citizenship, Constitutional and Electoral Systems (CenCES) seeking to nullify the suspension of Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo by President John Dramani Mahama.
The court’s decision effectively clears the way for the presidential investigative committee to continue its probe into the potential removal of the Chief Justice.
The five-member panel, presided over by Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, also included Justices Issifu Omoro Tanko Amadu, Yonny Kulendi, Henry Anthony Kwofie, and Yaw Asare Darko, with Justice Darko dissenting as the lone opposing voice in the ruling.
CenCES, a civil society organization, had argued that the President’s suspension of the Chief Justice violated the Constitution—particularly Article 146—and posed a threat to judicial independence. The group requested the court to nullify both the suspension and the ongoing work of the investigative committee chaired by Justice Gabriel Scott Pwamang.
In its suit dated May 15, 2025, CenCES stated:
“The government has continuously reneged on its commitment, thereby undermining the trust and cooperation that should exist between both parties.”
Despite these arguments, the Supreme Court sided with the executive branch, ruling that the suspension was legally sound and that the investigative process could proceed.
The Attorney General, the Chief Justice, and Justice Pwamang were named as respondents in the case.
Meanwhile, legal efforts to halt the inquiry are ongoing. In a separate suit, private citizen Theodore Kofi Atta-Quartey has filed for an interlocutory injunction to suspend the committee’s proceedings until his legal challenge is resolved.
