The Deputy Director of Operations at the Presidency, Mustapha Gbande, has described the #SaveTheJudiciaryDemo led by the largest opposition party, the New Patriotic Party (NPP), held on Monday, May 5, 2025, as unnecessary.

According to Gbande, who is also the Deputy General Secretary of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), the protest by the coalition of political parties failed to make any significant or compelling impact.

An alliance of political parties staged the demonstration on Monday in response to the suspension of Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Sackey Torkornoo and the mass dismissal of public service appointees.

The political parties, led by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and including the Ghana Union Movement (GUM), Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG), National Democratic Party (NDP), and the People’s National Party (PNP), along with other groups, aimed to oppose several actions undertaken by the current government.

According to a statement dated Friday, April 25, 2025, and released by the National Organiser of the NPP, Henry Nana Boakye, the protest was intended to mount a strong defense of the country’s constitution and the independence of the judiciary.

However, reacting to the demonstration, Mustapha Gbande suggested that the NPP-led protest may have been a strategy to gauge the party’s popularity four months after leaving office.

“I heard my brother’s opening remarks saying they brought large numbers onto the streets, which is good. Nobody underestimates the NPP and its membership. The argument has never been that the NPP has collapsed because it lost power. It is still a strong political party, and we respect that. Perhaps they wanted to test their popularity, which is fine.

“But in the end, they failed to drive home any meaningful point, because clearly, there was no need for a demonstration in the first place. It is not within the purview of Afenyo-Markin or my brother Agyapa Mercer to make determinations on these issues. These matters have generated different opinions—some agree, others disagree—but ultimately, it is not their place to decide whether these processes align with the law.”

#SaveTheJudiciaryDemo: NPP just wanted to test their popularity—no need for the protest – Mustapha Gbande pic.twitter.com/0mDZPNX9MY

— JoyNews (@JoyNewsOnTV) May 5, 2025