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Ghana Parliament approves nomination of two new Justices for Supreme Court

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BNN Correspondents
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The Ghanaian Parliament has approved nomination of Justice George Kingsley Koomson and Justice Ernest Yao Gaewu as Justices of the Supreme Court.

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This move came after President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo made the nominations in July 2022 to fill up expected vacancies at the apex court.

The house unanimously adopted the consensual report from the Appointments Committee, which was tasked with the vetting of the nominees.

After a secret vote on Friday, the Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Andrew Asiamah Amoako, announced the results and declared the nominees approved.

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The approval of the two nominees was not without controversy, as the Minority side initially opposed their approval.

The caucus argued that Justice Gaewu was a parliamentary candidate on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and was hence unfit to be on the apex court’s bench.

They suggested that his approval would set a bad precedent and become a yardstick for others to make similar demands.

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Regarding Justice George Koomson, the Minority insisted that he had "just joined the Court of Appeal" and that there were other competent and qualified justices that could have been elevated to the Supreme Court instead of him.

However, the Majority in Parliament disagreed, saying that both nominees were eminently qualified and had passed the rigorous vetting process.

They stressed that Justice Koomson had distinguished himself on the Court of Appeal and had a wealth of experience to bring to the Supreme Court. They also argued that Justice Gaewu's previous political affiliations did not disqualify him from serving on the bench.

The approval of the two new Justices brings the total number of Justices on the Supreme Court bench to 15, with five of them being appointed by President Akufo-Addo.

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