Justice Gertrude Torkornoo
Suspended Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo has described the probe into allegations of misconduct against her, as a mockery of justice and a ruse to unjustifiably remove her from office as the Chief Justice.
According to her, the decision to hold the meetings of the Justice Scott Pwamang five-member committee at the Osu Castle and the conditions under which the proceedings are being held, have subjected her to a mental torture.
It has also emerged that the three persons who have petitioned the President to remove the Chief Justice, have chosen not to testify themselves, but instead called others to testify in support of their petitions.
This, the CJ avers, is “completely offensive to known rules of procedure regulating the work of committee/commissions.”
Justice Torkornoo, in a supplementary affidavit for injunction to restrain the committee from further proceedings as well as restraining two members of the committee, noted that she has been subjected to “degrading treatment in violation of my fundamental rights.”
The affidavit also makes certain allegations which questions the credibility and integrity of the committee probing the petition, further raising questions about the fairness of the entire process.
It avers that as of today, Justice Torkornoo has not been provided with the prima facie finding which led to her suspension and the subsequent setting up of the committee to probe the petitions, to enable her determine her legal rights or adequately prepare a defence to the charges.
Suit
The suspended Chief Justice has filed a suit at the Supreme Court challenging her suspension and the setting up of the committee of enquiry to probe three petitions calling for her removal.
She avers that it is within her right to be given a public hearing in the interest of fairness.
Attached to the writ is an application for interlocutory injunction to halt the work of the committee pending the determination of the suit she has filed.
She is also asking for an order restraining Justices Gabriel Scott Pwamang (chairman) and Samuel Adibu-Asiedu (member) from presiding over or participating in proceedings of the committee appointed by the president to inquire into the three petitions.
Supplementary Affidavit
Justice Torkornoo, in a supplementary affidavit in support of her application for interlocutory injunction, has made some serious allegations against the committee, suggesting that she is being treated unfairly.
One of the major concerns she has raised is the decision to conduct the sitting at the Osu Castle, a high security zone instead of a judicial facility, specifically the Law Court Complex, which she says has been the case in the past.
She also highlighted the unfair treatment the committee has meted out to her lawyer, Kwabena Adu-Kusi, whom she said was ignored by the committee when it took series of dates for the sitting in her absence.
“…The committee refused to recognise my counsel simply because I was not personally present, and proceeded to fix subsequent hearing dates and made arrangements for the hearing without involving my counsel, even though he was present. The committee, shockingly, simply refused to recognise the same counsel on whom it had served a hearing notice only a day before.”
The affidavit also makes allegations of discrimination by the committee, pointing out that she and her lawyer were denied access to telephones and laptops, even though counsel for petitioners had access to their phones and laptops.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak