Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II in his full glory graced the opening ceremony of this year’s Conference of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) held at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST).
The five-day Conference under the theme “Peaceful, Fair and Transparent Election: The Key to Sustainable Development” will end on Friday, September 13, 2024.
In attendance were the President of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the National President of the GBA, Yaw Acheampong Boafo, the Chief Justice, Gertrude Sackey Torkornoo, the Attorney-General and the Minister for Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, the Regional Minister, Hon Simon Osei Mensah and others.
In his welcome address, the Ashanti Regional President of the Association, Kwame Owusu Sekyere, briefed his colleague lawyers from across the country about their host region and urged them to make the most out of their stay.
Also, the Ashanti Regional Minister, Hon Osei Mensah in his address outlined some projects and facilities the government has undertaken to facilitate the work of the judiciary, boasting of a yet-to-be- completed Court of Appeal Judges’ residences, 24 fully furnished court buildings, and 22 residential buildings all in the Region.
“President Akufo-Addo’s performance in the judiciary isn’t a surprise to me because he is a lawyer and democrat and understands the basics of democratic practices. There is no law without a well-resourced and motivated judiciary. The president has done his best to provide the needed infrastructure.”
In his speech, the Attorney-General, Godfred Dame stressed that democracy and preservation of the rule of law are fundamental to the organisation of free and fair elections and highlighted the role of lawyers and judges in it.
“For lawyers, who regularly appear as guests on media programmes and take to social media to run commentary, I will repeat an admonition I gave at the Bench, Bar, Faculty Lecture in October 2022, that the spread of false information by lawyers and disregard for the cherished values of the legal profession, apart from being disreputable, poses a far greater threat to cohesion in society if it comes from lawyers. In social media interactions, lawyers ought to be mindful of the requirements of the profession so far as ethics is concerned. Technology did not eradicate ethics. Neither did it render the need for ethical compliance any less important or necessary. The time-honoured requirements to be truthful and not to unjustifiably assail the integrity of others, disparage the character of people and abuse the rights of others ought to be strictly adhered to by lawyers. Lawyers have no business promoting election-related violence.”
He added, “In talking about the place of law in the conduct of a free and fair election, we cannot forget that the work of the Judiciary sits at the very heart of our society and our democracy. Judges are often called upon to make decisions on some of the most difficult questions arising from the conduct of elections. They are decisions that very few of us would feel comfortable making. However, it is judges, who with their wisdom derived from long experience, training and discipline, will make such decisions in furtherance of the principle that justice should be done. We therefore have a duty to support the Judiciary and not to denigrate that important institution.”
For her part, the Chief Justice, Gertrude Torkornoo said the Judiciary holds a crucial role in any electoral process not only in resolving disputes for registration, disputes over Parliamentary elections and disputes over presidential elections but also maintaining a standing Elections Management Committee chaired by a Supreme Court Judge that works actively with all relevant domestic and international organizations to respond to issues raised during and after electoral process.
She also outlined some amendments her outfit is seeking to ensure all electoral disputes-Presidential and Parliamentary- are fast-tracked in courts.
“In every election cycle commencing with the opening of registrations, this Committee tours the country in training and overseeing the work of judges adjudicating related disputes. Since 2008, the Judiciary has also produced a compendium of relevant statutes and case law as a guide for stakeholders. This year, we have moved from the one-volume compendium to a three-volume compendium, allowing for a good sampling of the vast talk of jurisprudence that has developed in the 30 years of the 4th Republic. I believe we will be ready to launch it in a few weeks so that stakeholders can familiarize themselves, and refresh their memories with the material available.
“In addition, the Rules of Court Committee has worked on amendments to the High Court Civil Procedure Rules CI 47 (2004) to introduce dedicated rules on the resolution of Parliamentary elections. It was noted in previous election cycles that the absence of a dedicated timeframe for the resolution of Parliamentary election disputes and the subjecting of such disputes to the regular procedural rule of the court led to horrendous abuse of the adjudicatory process. These amendments seek to address this phenomenon and introduce further measures for expedited hearings such as electronic service of court process. Further amendment of Supreme Court Rules CI 16 to improve the time frame for hearing of any Presidential election petition is also in progress.”
Additionally, the National President of the GBA, Lawyer Boafo buttressed the need for healthy commentaries by politicians and their agents, as he called on them to be circumspect in their utterances and actions in order not to hurt and jeopardize the country’s peace, progress and stability.
“Ghana has had eight elections since 1992, the ninth one is three months away. It is no doubt that the stakes are high and that is expressed in public commentaries of leading figures of the two main political parties of this country some of which are inappropriate and irresponsible…Such utterances and political rhetoric are incendiary that could stoke needless agitations and conflicts that could ultimately destabilise our democratic gains and electoral processes.”
Meanwhile, President Akufo-Addo indicated that a peaceful and credible election in the upcoming polls will come through a shared responsibility by all stakeholders in upholding the highest standard of integrity.
Pledging his commitment to ensuring a smooth electoral process as a government, President Akufo-Addo charged the Electoral Commission to act with impartiality, independence and integrity.
“The Commission should also ensure that all logistical arrangements are in place to facilitate a smooth voting process and that any dispute that may arise is handled expeditiously and transparently. It is imperative that the Electoral Commission remains the sole authority responsible for declaring election results to preserve the integrity and credibility of the electoral process.
He further urged political parties to desist from prematurely announcing election results, as he emphasised the repercussions it could have on the country’s cherished democracy.
“Political parties must refrain from declaring results before the Electoral Commission does so as this could lead to confusion, misinformation and even potential conflict. The EC’s role as an impartial and independent body ensures that its results reflect the will of the people free from partisan influence.”
