Ghana

For 21 days, I have stared at a blank page, caught in the throes of an existential whiplash. Last month, I was dispatched by JURIST to attend the Second World Social Summit to report on the mechanics of global development, but I returned to Ghana unsettled. This was my first international trip—and the reality of [...]

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Fanti Salms, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

On Tuesday, October 21, the Speaker of Parliament, Rt.  Hon. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, read to the House a letter endorsed by Ghana’s President, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama. The letter, dated October 7, formally announced President Mahama’s nomination of Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie for the position of Chief Justice under Article 144(1) of Ghana’s 1992 [...]

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Mwintirew, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Ghana’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, announced on September 15 a new visa policy reforming requirements for Chinese nationals in the country. The policy aims to curb illegal mining in Ghana—commonly known as “galamsey.” Illegal mining continues to devastate water bodies, threaten public health, and contribute to rising electricity and water costs. One [...]

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Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama has removed Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Torkornoo from her office and the Supreme Court following petitions accusing her of misusing public funds. The decision, announced on September 1, came after a constitutionally mandated committee investigated the petitions and recommended her removal for “misbehavior.” According to the committee’s findings, Her [...]

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Uprising Man, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The government of Ghana on August 14 announced that it has invited American forensic experts to assist in investigating the August 6 military helicopter crash that claimed eight lives, including two cabinet ministers. The Ghana Armed Forces confirmed the recovery of the flight data and cockpit voice recorders, called upon the Ghana Journalists Association to [...]

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Fquasie, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

In a public address on July 29, Ghana’s attorney general and minister for justice, Mr. Dominic Ayine, announced plans to expand access to legal education through sweeping reforms aimed at helping thousands of LLB holders who are unable to enter the Ghana School of Law (GSL) and qualify as lawyers. Ghana’s current legal education system [...]

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Owula kpakpo, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO) issued a statement Tuesday that strongly condemned the violence and vote-buying that marred the parliamentary re-run elections held in Ghana’s Ablekuma North constituency. The group criticized what they described as “acts of political thuggery, intimidation, and inducement of voters,” calling these developments a threat to Ghana’s democratic integrity. [...]

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On Tuesday, Deputy Attorney General of Ghana Justice Srem-Sai shared a post on social media saying that Chief Justice Getrude Torkornoo had filed a lawsuit against the Republic of Ghana at the ECOWAS Community Court in Abuja, Nigeria on July 4. The court of justice of the Economic Community of West African States has jurisdiction [...]

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Provided to JURIST

Last Tuesday, May 6, the Supreme Court of Ghana in a 3-2 majority dismissed an application by Vincent Ekow Assafuah, a member of parliament who invited the court to halt the suspension of Ghana’s Chief Justice as effected by the president of the republic, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama. The decision followed the unanimous ruling [...]

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Law students at the University of Cape Coast Faculty of Law are reporting on legal developments in Ghana for JURIST.  The late April suspension of the chief justice of Ghana, Getrude Sackey Torkornoo, has sparked a raft of sentiments and constitutional concerns across the Ghanaian populace, ranging from concerned citizens to political parties, independent statutory [...]

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