Alleged NPP Move to Enlarge Supreme Court Bench

Speaking before a packed crowd of Ghanaians at a press conference yesterday, an aggressive looking Hon. Mohammed Mumuni, National Democratic Congress (NDC) spokesperson on Constitutional and Legal Affairs, accused the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government of intending to appoint new judges who have pro-NPP sympathies to the Supreme Court to ensure that the review being sought by the Attorney-General on the constitutionality of the Fast Track Court is carried through.

"We have heard rumours that the NPP government intends to "pack" the Supreme Court by appointing new judges who have pro-NPP sympathies in order to ensure that the case is reviewed in their favour," Mumuni said, with mixed signals of anger and concern on his face.

Flanked by other legal brains of the NDC, including Mr. Kwaku Baah, vice-Chairman of the party, Alhaji Mumuni observed that if, indeed, this action is carried through, it will be the most blatant interference with the judicial process of the country.

He then took a swipe at the Attorney-General, saying the inconsistencies in dealing with the Tsatsu Tsikata case are simply reflective of the persecution that they are putting the man described by ex-President Rawlings as a "financial wizard" through.

Continuing amid nods from his colleagues, Alhaji Mumuni, who represents the Kumbungu constituency in Parliament, bemoaned the fact that charges against Tsikata have been changed for more than five times just as the forum for trial has also been changed from the Circuit Court to the illegal Fast Track Court and now to a "normal" High Court.

According to him, the minority NDC caucus in Parliament and the party's leadership view these inconsistencies as "a case of political harassment using the police and the courts as a cover."

Citing different charges brought against Tsikata, Alhaji Mumuni said it started with a charge of "wilfully causing financial loss to the state," then to a charge of "intentionally causing loss to public property," again to "carelessly causing loss to public property," and later changed at the Fast Track Court for "causing financial loss to the state" and once again changed to "wilfully causing financial loss to the state" before the same Fast Track Court that has now been declared unconstitutional.

Not happy with verbal attacks on the five Supreme Court judges, who ruled in favour of Tsikata, the Kumbungu MP said, "The verbal haranguing and subtle and overt attacks on the five justices, coming from individuals, otherwise considered legal luminaries, are even more regrettable.

The worst offenders are ministers in the NPP administration who have embarked on a campaign to whip up public sentiments against the five judges who have done nothing but perform their judicial duty, literally accusing them of stalling business, investment and private enterprise".

Meanwhile, the NDC has emphatically stated that it would reject all attempts if the Chief Justice, Justice Edward K. Wiredu, is made to sit on the panel to review the decision declaring the Fast Track Court as unconstitutional.

At the hurriedly organised press conference, held jointly by the NDC executive and its Parliamentary caucus on Constitutional and Legal Matters, which attracted other members of the public, the NDC stated clearly that, in accordance with the rule of natural justice, nobody should be a judge in his own court.

Therefore, they contended, the Chief Justice, having established the Fast Track Court, should not be allowed to sit in the panel in the review put forward by the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Nana Akufo-Addo, even though he sat on the case that declared the Fast Track Court unconstitutional.

The NDC sought to imply that the inclusion of the Chief Justice on the panel may change the decision of the Supreme Court to favour the Attorney-General, if all the 10 judges are allowed to sit on the review panel.

Views sought from some members of the public imply that if the Chief Justice is prevented from sitting on the panel, the number of judges still stand at nine; that is, if Justice George Lamptey is included.

Therefore, it was pointed out, there is the possibility that the plaintiff, Tsatsu Tsikata, will retain his five votes against the A-G's four, that is if Lamptey considers the FTC constitutional.

However, should Justice Lamptey vote against the Fast Track idea, the A-G will be left with only three votes, while Tsatsu's improves to six - assuming those who sat on the original suit do not change their minds.