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Claim: Accra-based Citi TV claims Ghana’s President John Mahama has appointed Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie as the country’s acting Chief Justice after he suspended Justice Gertrude Torkornooo from that role.
Verdict: Misleading. President Mahama did not appoint Justice Baffoe-Bonnie as the country’s acting Chief Justice. Instead, Article 144 Section 6 (B) of Ghana’s 1992 Constitution provides that in the absence of the Chief Justice, the “most senior” among the Supreme Court justices will perform the functions of the Chief Justice. The role automatically falls on Justice Baffoe-Bonnie, who is the senior-most Justice among his peers.
Full Text
Accra-based Citi TV claims Ghana’s President John Mahama has appointed Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie as the country’s acting Chief Justice after he suspended Justice Gertrude Torkornooo from that role.
The media outlet’s report came hours after President Mahama suspended the current Chief Justice Torkornoo, pending investigations into some allegations levelled against her in three petitions.
“President John Dramani Mahama has, in accordance with Article 146(6) of the Constitution and in consultation with the Council of State, determined that a prima facie case has been established in respect of three petitions against the Chief Justice, Her Ladyship Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo,” a Presidency communication said.
Accra-based Citi TV posted on Facebook that the President appointed Justice Baffoe-Bonnie as Chief Justice shortly after the communication from the presidency.
Screenshot of the post on Facebook
Reacting to the post, a Facebook user, John De Baptist Boadu, wrote:
“For the record, President Mahama has not appointed Baffoe-Bonnie JSC as acting CJ respectfully… The provisions in the constitution regarding the successor of a suspended CJ are explicit and without any form of ambiguity.”
Another Facebook user, Jonas Atikpo, replied:
“Mahama didn’t appoint anyone. The judiciary knows what to do in this situation. Irrelevant journalists.”
The social media data showed the post had 329 likes, 130 comments, and 25 shares as of April 23, 2025.
Also, here is a link to a video about the claim that Accra-based Citi TV, now known as ChannelOne TV, shared on YouTube, which has over 2,216 views.
DUBAWA decided to investigate this claim because of its potential to misinform.
Verification
DUBAWA’s research showed that President John Mahama did not appoint Justice Baffoe-Bonnie as the country’s acting Chief Justice, as the media outlet alleged.
Instead, Article 144 Section 6 (B) of Ghana’s 1992 Constitution provides that in the absence of the Chief Justice, the “most senior” among the Supreme Court justices will perform the functions of the Chief Justice.
The role automatically falls on Justice Baffoe-Bonnie, who is the senior-most Justice among his peers.
A Justice of the Supreme Court enjoys security of tenure except for stated misbehaviour or incompetence as provided in the country’s Constitution, where the Justice or the Chief Justice may be suspended or removed altogether.
Article 146 (1) of the 1992 Constitution provides that:
“A Justice of the Superior Court or a Chairman of a Regional Tribunal shall not be removed from office except for stated misbehaviour or incompetence or on the ground of inability to perform the functions of his office arising from infirmity of Body or mind.”
However, when a Chief Justice is suspended or removed, the Constitution provides in Article 144(6) that the senior-most Justice will have to assume the role until the President appoints a substantive head of the Judiciary with the approval of Parliament.
“Where the office of Chief Justice is vacant, or where the Chief Justice is for any reason unable to perform the functions of his office –
(a) until a person has been appointed to, and has assumed the functions of, that office; or
(b) until the person holding that office has resumed the functions of that office; as the case may be, those functions shall be performed by the most senior of the Justices of the Supreme Court.”
With his long service as a Supreme Court Judge, Justice Baffoe-Bonnie is the senior-most among his peers. Therefore, he is automatically qualified to serve as the country’s acting Chief Justice.
Conclusion
Contrary to the media outlet’s allegation, President John Mahama did not appoint Justice Baffoe-Bonnie as the country’s acting Chief Justice.
