Private legal practitioner, Martin Kpebu, has thrown his support behind President John Dramani Mahama’s nomination of Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie as Chief Justice, pointing to three key reasons why he is the best fit for the position.

He explained that Justice Baffoe-Bonnie comes across as the best choice because of his seniority, his cross-party appointment history, and his independence in the landmark 2012 election petition.

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Speaking on TV3's Ghana Tonight and monitored by GhanaWeb on Friday, September 26, 2025, he stated that Baffoe-Bonnie's seniority, is essential for harmony and management within the judiciary.

He recalled tensions that arose from past appointments where junior justices were elevated over their seniors.

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“One of the issues with the appointment of Justice Torkornoo was that she had a lot of seniors ahead of her, and all of them were bypassed. She was down, down, down in terms of seniority, like the way Joseph was very young, yes, but yet Joseph was appointed, right? So, this one you could see that the appointment, they see, wasn't a problem, but subsequently in relationships on the bench there, you could see there were cracks," he stated.

He stressed that Justice Baffoe-Bonnie’s long service on the Supreme Court would provide the maturity needed to avoid such cracks.

“With Baffoe-Bonnie being the senior-most, at least he has done more years on the Supreme Court bench, so that experience will reflect in how he would manage his colleagues,” Kpebu explained.

Martin Kpebu also touched on Baffoe-Bonnie’s appointment history under different presidents.

He stated that he was first appointed to the High Court by former President Jerry John Rawlings in 2000, later moved to the Court of Appeal by President John Agyekum Kufuor in 2006, and then elevated to the Supreme Court in 2008.

“On paper, it is supposed to look like he subscribes to the philosophies of the NPP because President Kufuor appointed him to the Supreme Court. But now circumstances have brought us here, and President Mahama has appointed him Chief Justice. It’s a huge leap in our march for independent persons to be appointed to very high public offices,” Kpebu argued.

He described the move as an important signal that political loyalty should not be the overriding factor in judicial appointments.

Kpebu praised Justice Baffoe-Bonnie for showing independence of judgment during the 2012 election petition.

Despite being a Kufuor appointee, he voted in favour of then President Mahama on the decisive issue of unsigned pink sheets, which proved critical to the case’s outcome.

“By voting for President Mahama even though he was a Kufuor appointee, Baffoe-Bonnie had shown that independence of judgment we are always clamouring for in public office,” Kpebu recalled.

He added that Baffoe-Bonnie’s stance came at a cost under the Akufo-Addo administration.

“He was really ostracised, hounded left, right, centre, told to resign and get out of office but somehow, he survived it, and today he’s on his way to become substantive Chief Justice," he added.

Kpebu noted that his seniority, cross-party appointments, and independence mindedness made Baffoe-Bonnie’s nomination “very exciting” and a step forward for judicial independence in Ghana.

President Mahama has nominated Paul Baffoe-Bonnie as the next Chief Justice, following the removal of Gertrude Torkornoo from office earlier this month.

In a statement issued by the Presidency on September 23, 2025, President Mahama said the nomination was made in line with Article 144(1) of the 1992 Constitution.

JKB/VPO

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