Supreme Court nominee Justice Kweku Tawiah Ackaah-Boafo has delivered a firm defence of judicial independence, dismissing suggestions that pre-trial public commentary by Attorney General Dr Dominic Ayine can sway judicial outcomes.
During his parliamentary vetting, the judge responded pointedly to concerns raised by Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, who questioned whether the Attorney General’s frequent press conferences, often seen as targeting former government officials accused of corruption, could prejudice ongoing trials.
“I would rather be shocked that any judge who understands his role ought to be influenced by a statement made by a prosecutor or the attorney general even before the matter comes in,” Justice Ackaah-Boafo said.
The nominee stressed that judges rely solely on evidence presented in courtrooms and not on media narratives or public sentiment.
“Judicial independence, clearly as we understand it, has decisional independence and institutional independence. In decisional independence, the judges hear evidence and the facts and apply the law,” he explained.
He underscored that judges “speak only through judgements”, adding that while public discourse may suggest bias or external influence, such perceptions are often rooted in ignorance of legal principles.
“Yes, for an uneducated mind, it might create the impression that the judge has done something untoward, but we only speak through our judgement.”
Justice Ackaah-Boafo noted that if public pre-trial disclosures give the impression that an accused person is already guilty before due process, it is the integrity of the accuser—not the judge—that is undermined.
“If providing that information will make people think that the person was already guilty but the trial did not meet that standard, I think it rather undermines the integrity of the person who put that information out there than the judge,” he stated.
His remarks come amid heightened scrutiny of high-profile corruption cases, where critics argue that political influence and media narratives could compromise the fairness of trials.
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