A former New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential aspirant, Dr Arthur Kobina Kennedy, has criticised Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie over his recent comments on state-owned institutions, describing the Judicial Service’s response as an “apologetic non-apology”.

Dr Kennedy said the explanation failed to acknowledge that his remarks were inappropriate and argued that the head of the Judiciary should instead focus on longstanding challenges within Ghana’s judicial system.

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Speaking on TV3, monitored by GhanaWeb on September 5, 2026, Dr Kennedy said the issue was not about the Chief Justice’s position but the judgement he exercised in making comments on the performance of some state-owned institutions.

“What I think is that this is an apologetic non-apology. Nobody is questioning the Chief Justice's fate. We are questioning his judgement," he said.

Dr Kennedy also expressed concern about what he described as a decline in the independence of the judiciary, arguing that the institution had become increasingly aligned with governments in power.

"They have been getting more and more partisan and aligning themselves more and more with the government in power,” he said.

He stressed the need for the judiciary to reposition itself and restore public confidence in its independence.

His comments come after the Judicial Service clarified that recent remarks by Baffoe-Bonnie on the performance of some state-owned enterprises were made in good faith and were not intended to undermine the independence of the judiciary.

JKB/EB

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