The Member of Parliament for Suame, John Darko, has lashed out at President John Dramani Mahama over the removal of Justice Gertrude Torkornoo from her office as Chief Justice of Ghana, describing it as a ‘judicial coup’ clothed in flawed constitutional procedures.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, September 2, 2025, Darko, who also serves as legal counsel to the Minority Caucus, said the President’s decision undermines Ghana’s democracy and gravely threatens the independence of the judiciary.

“Know Ye All Men that the removal of the CJ has nothing to do with legal constitutional process. It has everything to do with politics and the president's inordinate desire to control all the levers of government. It is a judicial coup clothed in flawed constitutional procedures,” the statement said.

President Mahama’s action followed a report from a committee established to investigate the Chief Justice, but Darko insisted that the process lacked fairness and was driven by political motives.

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He cited past comments by NDC Chairman Johnson Asiedu Nketiah during the 2024 campaign, in which he reportedly vowed that both the Chief Justice and the Electoral Commission Chairperson would be removed if the party returned to power.

“This removal is part of a grand agenda by the NDC to bastardise the institutions of state to enable them run the country like a gangster town,” it stated.

John Darko warned that Ghana now risks being grouped with countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, where Chief Justices have been removed under politically charged circumstances.

“September 1 will be remembered as the day the executive finally subjugated the judiciary. It must live in infamy,” the statement read.

'We are mourning democracy' - Minority Leader reacts to Torkornoo's removal

Read the statement below



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