Don't just talk because you have to talk - Salam Mustapha jabs Mahama for 'NPP-packed judiciary' comment

The National Youth Organiser for the New Patriotic Party, Salam Mustapha has sent some salvos the way of former President John Dramani Mahama over the latter’s stance that Ghana’s judiciary committee is filled with NPP judges.

The youth organiser expressed his astonishment about John Mahama’s outburst when he accepted the decision of the same judges to uphold the 2012 general elections in favour of the National Democratic Congress.

In this regard, the NPP National Youth Organiser cautioned John Mahama to be watchful of what he says despite what democracy stands for.

“Even when we disagree with the court, we say that we disagree with you and that’s exactly how Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo did in 2013 when we disagreed with the Supreme Court that this brings finality to the court. Even though we disagree but we respect the court. We have always respected state institutions, taking our time to go out and get our case out there.

We don’t lampoon institutions just for the sake of it. Just because you have to talk, you open your mouth at any angle and throw anything out there. I don’t think that that is democracy,” Salam Mustapha said on TV3 Newday and monitored by GhanaWeb.

“Look, in 2000 when President Kufuor became president, there was no single appointee that was his. The entire judiciary was NDC appointed. The Electoral Commissioner was appointed by the NDC. IGP Peter Nanfuri thems were all appointed by Jerry Rawlings. I’m saying everybody then was appointed by the NDC who when President Kufuor came in, had worked over the period. The Justices we came to meet and I think they went on retirement have been in the system.

“And this same judiciary that is being lambasted, lampooned, destroyed, castigated was the same judiciary that upheld the election of John Dramani Mahama in 2013 which we had a disagreement with but we accepted. Rowland, tell me one occasion that you have seen the NPP organise an attack on the judiciary. Tell me one,” he further said.

This same judiciary that is being lambasted by the NDC is the same judiciary that upheld the election of John Mahama in 2013 - Salam Mustapha#TV3NewDay pic.twitter.com/ojU0YgjsS0

— #TV3GH (@tv3_ghana) September 4, 2023

What Mahama said:

“You can see what the current president has done, he has appointed the biggest number of judges onto the bench, it is more than 80 towards 100 and counting," he noted in a virtual address to the 3rd Annual Lawyers Conference of the NDC on Saturday, September 2.

“He has packed the court and we know they have packed the court because they want to avoid accountability after they have left office. We must be prepared as NDC legal persons to also go onto the bench so that we can balance out the judiciary.

“Currently, the judiciary is packed with NPP-inclined judges because this government has carried out a deliberate policy of putting their people on to the bench.

“So, I encourage some of you to look at careers on the bench so that we can balance out what the current situation is,” he added.

The issue of appointments onto the bench has been topical under this government with allegations that politically exposed people have been appointed by the president.

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