Cheap justice?

Is Ghana devaluing Justice? Is the scale of justice tilted? This has since been denied.

But woe unto anyone named Justice even from birth. It’s even worse if conferred as title. In either case, don’t run across the village square beating your chest as King Solomon; for Justice is also a cross, indeed an eternal burden that may trail you until death do us part. It may sentence you to a life of misery: solitude, loneliness (‘anti-so,’), realizing overnight that you are home alone. If you break jail and escape to normal social life, Justice Asomasi, be prepared for the ‘kwɛnsekwɛnses’ as said in Cape Coast. That is the plight of Justice Baffoe Bonney: he has broken jail.

If you were a judge of the Supreme Court those days, you attracted furtive glances in public; and sinners could flee fearing possible orders of ‘monkye no.’ It was rare ever meeting a Chief Justice, since they were always disguised in wig and gown (often frowning). He was a virtual archbishop; alpha and omega; King Solomon’s next of kin. The world of justices became more common in 2013, during the supreme court hearings on 2012 elections, when the baritone voice of Justice Atugugba on live TV, brought ‘deities’ to your door step. I myself never knew he was mortal enough until 2019 when in my capacity as a temporary big man, I sat next to him at an official function in Accra. I was surprised to have survived a 30 minutes chat with him and to learn that he was even uncle to my class mate in Legon.

With Chief Justice Baffoe Bonney, I knew he was courting trouble when a few days after his big appointment 2025, he was ‘caught’ at a thanksgiving church service making merry and dancing like a mortal: waste-line liberated, hands thrownmidair, even singing joyously, and virtually lost in merriment. Unbeknownst to him, TV cameras followed ignoring the caution: ‘New Chief Justice dances in church, please off your cameras.’ I knew Baffoe Bonney fairly well in his Sarbah Hall days, and was aware that unrestrained, his regular dance moves could invite the Fire Service!

I had also followed him as part of the historic SC panel whose ruling ratified the Mahama/Mills presidency. In 2025, Baffoe came under close scrutiny on his appointment as Chief Justice to replace Ghana’s third female C J (Torkonoo), who had been strangely removed. In replacing the beloved CJ, had Ghana exchanged its digital television for a black and white analogue? The answer now blows in the wind.

May 2026, our CJ travels to US/Canada for the World Cup with Govt delegation, joining in the joyous celebration of Ghana in matches (no problem, but eyebrows raised). Next stop, joining Government delegations mourning with the Gold Boy Sammy on the passing of his in-law. (No problem,but eyebrows raised.)

The last straw was this September when he ignored multiple judicial issues overflowing his desk, and waded into the realm of state-owned enterprises where he waxed political without apologies. The Chief Justice stunned his audience, comparingthe high productivity of current staff, to their dismal performance in previous govt now in opposition. CJ however fell short of shouting a party slogan.

The incident was without precedence and courted public anger and shock: a rude awakening that Ghana’s scale of justice had been grossly ruined by the Chief himself, who now loses any moral authority to lead. In traditional settings he would have returned home barefooted.

A sampling of the public uproar:

‘The JDM boy has taken over Government PR’…’judiciary independence is gone…’ ‘A disgrace to the judiciary…’ ‘Desecrating the office of CJ…’ ‘When I saw the video, I said Jesus we are doomed…’ ‘CJ has won a political jersey.. grounds for resignation’… ‘He has overstepped his bounds’— ‘the judiciary is now led by a politician.’

And then this bombshell: ‘He has been working with us since 2012…’

The September confession reminds me of the late 1990’s when the Council of State ‘absent-mindedly’ vacated their office and became presidential errand boys: welcoming the President at airport, presenting presidential speeches, etc. Then also was the horror story of one great Justice, who got happily promoted as CJ in 1996, but fatally stumbled by jailing a columnist in error. My write hand at the time, charitably advised the President to quickly write to the CJ, ‘and apologize unreservedly for any embarrassment this promotion has caused you.’

In the current case though, our CJ has only three months to retire, having gotten his new position close to his send off.

If so, the ‘tongue-slip’ should be simply interpreted as:

Dear President, APPLICATION FOR EARLY RETIREMENT

In truth, CJ’s venerable title as ‘Chief’ has faded too soon, leaving behind a huge volume of discounted stock and a tilted scale of justice.