Supreme Court judge, Justice Kwasi Anin-Yeboah, has been nominated by President Nana Akufo-Addo as the next Chief Justice of Ghana, to succeed Justice Sophia Akuffo who retires on December 20, 2019.
First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei Owusu announced his nomination to Members of Parliament Thursday, and referred it to the Appointments Committee, TV3’s Komla Klutse reports.
Justice Anin-Yeboah is currently the fourth longest serving Supreme Court judge after justices Sophia Akuffo, Julius Ansah and Jones Mawulom Dotse.
If approved by parliament, he will become the 14th Chief Justice of Ghana and the first male Chief Justice in 12 years.
The names of Justice Anin-Yeboah and Justice Dotse were tabled before President Akufo-Addo to be considered for the highest judicial job in the country, but he settled on former after a careful consideration.
His nomination was done in accordance with Article 144 (1) of the 1992 Constitution, which states: “The Chief Justice shall be appointed by the President, acting in consultation with the Council of State and with the approval of Parliament.”
Justice Anin-Yeboah graduated from the Ghana School of Law in 1981 and worked as an advocate for nearly 20 years before was appointed a High Court judge 2001.
In 2003 was promoted to the Court of Appeal where he spent five years before being promoted again to the Supreme Court in 2008.
Task ahead
A critic of the General Legal Council (GLC), Professor Stephen Kwaku Asare in a congratulating the chief justice nominee said “he assumes the office at a time when legal education is in a crisis. He would be inheriting a moribund GLC and an IEC with zero credibility”.
He indicated in a Facebook post that it will be a non-starter for the incoming chief justice to maintain the status quo.
“I trust that he will reach out to all interested stakeholders to bring about the much needed reform in legal education and in administering justice in this country,” he said.
By 3news.com|Ghana