The Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) has called on Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie to exercise restraint in his public engagements to protect the Judiciary from perceptions of political bias.
The call follows remarks attributed to the Chief Justice during visits to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) and the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) on September 2, 2026, alongside members of the Council for Legal Education and Training.
According to CDD-Ghana, the Chief Justice, during his visit to MIIF, praised the institution’s current management while questioning its performance over “the past eight years.”
At SSNIT, the Centre said, he contrasted the organisation’s current operations with previous attempts to sell some properties in its asset portfolio and lamented that the management of the country’s affairs had previously “sunk so low.”
CDD-Ghana said such comparisons between the current and previous administrations risk creating an impression that the Chief Justice was endorsing the performance of one political administration over another.
“By explicitly contrasting performance under the current administration with its predecessor’s, the Chief Justice crossed a vital constitutional line into partisan validation,” the Centre said.
It argued that the remarks could create perceptions of political bias, undermine the Judiciary’s non-partisan mandate and potentially raise concerns under the Code of Conduct for Judges and Magistrates.
The Centre’s concerns come against the backdrop of what it described as declining public confidence in Ghana’s Judiciary.
Citing the Afrobarometer Round 10 survey conducted in 2024, CDD-Ghana said only 35% of citizens trust the courts, representing a 21-percentage-point decline since 2012. It added that 62% of respondents believe judicial decisions are routinely influenced by powerful interests, while about half doubt that ordinary citizens can obtain a fair trial.
CDD-Ghana stressed that judges should not be completely withdrawn from public life but must exercise the restraint required by their office.
“Justice must not only be done but be seen to be done — a principle that requires the unequivocal appearance of neutrality, not merely its substance,” it stated.
The Centre therefore urged the Chief Justice to lead by example by adhering strictly to the judicial Code of Conduct and limiting public appearances, particularly engagements with other state institutions, to matters directly related to court administration or legal development.
It also called on the Judicial Council and the Association of Judges and Magistrates to strengthen internal oversight mechanisms and ensure that judicial officers are held accountable regardless of their rank.
CDD-Ghana warned that the credibility of the Judiciary depends heavily on public confidence, which it said was already “running dangerously low.”
“No explanation offered after the fact can repair damage that better judgment would have avoided in the first place. Credibility is preserved by conduct that leaves no room for doubt,” the Centre said.
The organisation urged the Chief Justice to reflect on the responsibilities of his office, align his conduct with the ethical demands of the position and uphold the Code of Conduct in order to help restore public trust in Ghana’s justice system.
