Catholic Bishops in Ghana Fault Chief Justice Suspension, Say Move Triggered “widespread anxiety”

Accra, 24 July, 2025 / 8:20 PM

Members of the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference (GCBC) have criticized the controversial suspension of the country’s Chief Justice in April, stating that the President’s decision has sparked “widespread public anxiety” across the West African nation.

In a Tuesday, July 22 statement, GCBC members weigh in on the suspension of Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, which is reportedly grounded in three separate petitions calling for a formal investigation in accordance with Ghana’s Constitution.

“The Conference is deeply disturbed by the circumstances surrounding the suspension of the Chief Justice. This unprecedented action has provoked widespread public anxiety,” GCBC members say in the statement that their President, Bishop Matthew Kwasi Gyamfi of Ghana’s Sunyani Catholic Diocese, signed.

While acknowledging the “legal right of the executive to initiate processes for judicial accountability,” the Catholic Bishops emphasize that such actions “must be exercised with professionalism, impartiality, and an unyielding regard for national peace and cohesion.”

They explain that a Chief Justice, by virtue of their “indispensable role in constitutional order”, must be shielded from political interference. The Bishops warn that justice is endangered once it is rendered “conditional or revocable.”

Once justice is endangered, the GCBC members further explain, “it becomes a fragile instrument of those in power, rather than a guarantor of the common good.”

“If the public perceives the Judiciary as vulnerable to partisan interests, the consequences for democratic governance are dire,” they say, and add, “No democracy can survive without an independent judiciary, secure from any situation or perception of political control or manipulation.”

In the July 22 statement, the Catholic Bishops in Ghana emphasize that the removal of a sitting Chief Justice is a matter of profound national significance.

They say that the process must be “scrupulously guided by constitutional principles, absolute procedural fairness, and a clear respect for the doctrine of the separation of powers.”

“Any precedent that appears to place the judiciary at the mercy of the executive risks irreparably eroding public trust in the very institution citizens rely upon for justice,” the Catholic Bishops in Ghana say.

The GCBC members urge all stakeholders “to act with the utmost conscientiousness, safeguarding both the inviolable rule of law and the dignity of the judiciary.”

The Church leaders also reflect on the electoral violence following the 7 December 2024 general elections that led to the election of  John Dramani Mahama as the country’s president.

The elections were reportedly marred with some malpractices that prompted a rerun in 19 polling stations on July 11.

July 11 rerun was reportedly marred by reports of intimidation, vote-buying, and physical assaults, including an attack on former Member of Parliament, Mavis Hawa Koomson. Security protocols were repeatedly breached at several stations.

In their July 22 statement, the Catholic Bishops decried the violence, saying that true democracy transcends the periodic casting of votes.

Democracy, they explain, “embodies a just social order that respects the rule of law, upholds the intrinsic dignity of every human person, and guarantees citizens the right to participate meaningfully in shaping our national destiny.”

 “At the heart of this vision is the sanctity of the ballot and the imperative of peaceful elections,” the Catholic Bishops in Ghana further say. Since the promulgation of our 1992 Constitution, the Bishops say that Ghana has rightly been celebrated for its democratic stability.

They found it regrettable that “this hard-earned reputation is gravely endangered whenever electoral violence surfaces, as was tragically witnessed recently in the Ablekuma North Constituency.”

The Bishops  “unequivocally” condemn all forms of electoral violence, especially those which they say  threaten “the very foundations upon which our democracy stands.”

“We, therefore, urge the State to initiate prompt, thorough investigations, and act decisively to hold perpetrators accountable,” they say.

They invite all Ghanaians, including political leaders, security agencies, media professionals, religious and traditional authorities, and the general public, to reject violence in any form and foster a renewed national consensus on the value of equity and tolerance.”

The Catholic Bishops say that it is only through joint efforts by Ghanaians that “true democratic participation will flourish and institutions of governance earn legitimacy and trust.”

“We reaffirm the indispensable role of the Electoral Commission as the national platform for the people’s voice. Its integrity, transparency, and independence are non-negotiable. We caution against any attempt to intimidate or undermine this critical institution,” they say.

They further decry electoral violence, intimidation, and undue interference which they say only serves the purpose of eroding “the moral fabric of the nation and damage public confidence in governance.”

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“Let us, as one people, fervently renew our shared covenant to build a just, peaceful, and prosperous Ghana, a nation where every citizen finds refuge in the law and hope in our common future,” the Catholic Bishops in Ghana say in their July 22 statement.