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2 High court judges sacked

The two, Justice Kofi Essel Mensah and Justice Francis K. Opoku, were removed following recommendations by the committee formed to investigate allegations of “stated misbehavior” leveled against them.

 

Two more High court judges shown in the Anas expose' on bribery in the judiciary have been removed from office effective April 19, 2016.

“His Excellency the President, John Dramani Mahama, in a letter dated April 12, 2016 accepted the recommendation for the their removal from office by the Committee set up by the Hon. Lady Chief Justice to investigate the petition from Anas Aremeyaw Anas of Tigereyepi for their removal on grounds of stated misbehaviour,” a statement signed by the Judicial Secretary, Justice Alex B. Poku Acheampong, has said.

“The Director of Human Resource has also been requested to ensure that their names are deleted from the payroll of the Judicial Service with effect from April 19, 2016,” the statement added.

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Ghana was hit with a massive judicial scandal when it was revealed in an expose by Anas Aremeyaw Anas that Superior and lower court judges took bribes in order to free criminal.

Twenty magistrates have so far been removed from office.

The statement explained that in the case of Justice Francis K. Opoku, a second petition for his removal from office was submitted to the President by the Judicial Council on October 29, 2015 on grounds of stated misbehaviour and incompetence following complaints about his failure to sit regularly as a Justice of the High Court at the High Court, Bolgatanga. The Committee made the following observations after investigating the matter:

Engaged in ex-parte discussion with agents of Anas in respect of the case “Webajuwa Bazilyern vs. Kaponga Kunipwah contrary to Rule 3(7) of the Code of Conduct for Judges and Magistrates of Ghana. Received money from the petitioner and his team with a promise to satisfy the wishes of a party in a case that was pending before him.

“In respect of the second petition against him, the committee found that Justice Opoku’s dereliction in the performance of his duties and continued absence from duty at the High Court, Bolgatanga had eroded public confidence in the Judiciary in the region and portrayed him as incompetent. It concluded that his conduct constituted stated misbehaviour and incompetence contrary to Article 146 (1) of the 1992 constitution," the statement said.

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In Justice Kofi Essel Mensah’s case, the Committee found that he had held ill-intentioned discussion with one Gabriel Achana, a court staff, about a bail application in the case of “The Republic vs. Mohammed Nii Baa” with the prospects of receiving valuable consideration.

“The committee concluded that the judge’s conduct amounted to impropriety which had undermined public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the Judiciary contrary to Rule 2(A) of the code of conduct for judges and magistrates,” the statement said.

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