Former President of the Ghana Bar Association, Sam Okudzeto says the president’s recent directive to the Attorney General (AG) to overhaul the justice system exposes the justice minister’s ignorance of her duties and responsibilities.

According to Mr. Okudzeto, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Marietta Brew Appiah Oppong should have been proactive and foreseeing enough to have known that there was the need to overhaul the justice sector and her department without the prodding of the president.

“…I’m rather surprised that it is coming from the Presidency,” the legal luminary stressed.

He told Radio XYZ's news magazine programme Strict Proof on Tuesday July 30, 2013 that: “…You see; this is the whole problem; this is the responsibility of the Minister. The minister should have taken that initiative. She shouldn’t have waited for the president to be telling her what to do”.

“It is something that is worrying many of us about governance in this country,” he bemoaned.

“They appoint you ministers and sometimes we don’t know why they are appointed ministers [or] what they have given to those who are appointing them that they can do in order to be able to make an impact on their department and we don’t see it and it is sad that the president has to be giving this directives [because] he’s not a lawyer”.

The president’s directive to the AG was announced on Tuesday to the Presidential Press Corp at the Flagstaff House by Deputy Information and Media Relations Murtala Muhammed.

He explained that the reforms are aimed at arming the Justice Department toward serving the interest of the country to forestall payment of unjustified judgment debts amongst others.