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Politics of Thursday, 7 September 2023

Source: peacefmonline.com

How many courts did you build? Akufo-Addo has built 140 courts - Titus-Glover shuts Mahama up

Nii Titus-Glover Nii Titus-Glover

Nii Titus-Glover has rebuked former President John Dramani Mahama over his recent statements concerning the Judiciary.

The former President, speaking to NDC lawyers at a meeting last Sunday, accused President Nana Akufo-Addo of packing the courts with Judges who are members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).

“Our lawyers, some of you must be prepared to go unto the bench, I know that some of you have very lucrative legal practices you will not want to leave and go onto the bench. But you can see what the current President has done, he appointed the largest number of judges onto the bench. More than 80 towards hundred and counting.

“He’s packed the court and we know that they’ve packed the court because they want to avoid accountability after they have left office. So all manner of people who have been known to be partisan, to have been executives of their party who are in the legal profession have been leapfrogged onto the Superior courts and other places,” Mr. Mahama said.

Nii Titus-Glover has challenged Mr. Mahama's statements, emphasizing there are procedures for the appointment of Judges.

He recounted that before one is appointed to the bench, he or she is to be of high moral standing and with 15 years or more working experience and also the recommendations are made by certain groups of individuals; all of this, to him, proves Mahama's statements to be false.

"I'm told that the Bar Council can recommend, the Chief Justice can recommend and the Executive can also recommend," he said.

He also detailed that under the Akufo-Addo administration, over 100 courts have been built as against what he revealed as three (3) built by former President John Mahama during his regime which means more Judges would have to be appointed to these courts.

He found Mr. Mahama's comments extremely unfortunate and condemned them in no uncertain terms.

"If we have built 140 courts, won't you populate it?...You need to populate it and give them jobs to do but there are processes in the appointment of Judges from the High Court to the Court of Appeal and to the Supreme Court. Is my big brother saying he doesn't know this? Didn't he adopt these processes when he was President?", he questioned.

Hon. Titus-Glover made these submissions on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" programme Wednesday morning.