The Member of Parliament for Bawku Central Mahama Ayariga has challenged the powers of President Akufo-Addo to appoint more than nine justices to the Supreme Court in addition to the Chief Justice.
He made this known at the vetting of new Supreme Court Justices appointed by the president to replace two justices who are due to retire.
The president in his letter requested for the vetting of the nominees indicating that the reason was to fill the vacancy that will be created from the retirement of the two candidates that join the courts to make the number 15.
Ayariga argued that the constitution sets the number of Supreme Court justices at 9 in addition to the Chief Justice.
He also contends that even though the constitution does not put a bar on the maximum number of Supreme Court Justices to be appointed, presidents in the past and the current president have sought to allocate to themselves this power.
“Even if you say that, the President has a discretion, a discretionary power, the exercise of it is governed by Article 296.”
“So, the President ought to have brought a constitutional instrument to Parliament saying that, I intend to place the upper limits of the membership of the Supreme Court at 15,” he stated.
By Hanson Agyeman
