A Ghanaian citizen, Samuel Bryan Buabeng, has invoked the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court to challenge the continued operation of the Council of State following the resignation of retired Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo.
Mr Buabeng, through his lawyer Jonathan Asare Owusu, is contending that the failure by President John Dramani Mahama to appoint a replacement for the former Chief Justice has left the Council improperly constituted under Article 89 of the 1992 Constitution.
The legal action centres on the constitutional requirement for a former Chief Justice to serve on the Council of State. The plaintiff argues that the position has remained vacant for nearly a year since the resignation of Justice Akuffo, raising questions about the Council’s constitutional composition.
The lawyer maintained that the constitutional provision is intended to ensure that the President has access to the institutional knowledge and judicial experience of a former Chief Justice in the discharge of the Council’s advisory responsibilities.
The plaintiff is therefore asking the Supreme Court to compel the President to initiate the required consultations with Parliament within two weeks.
He is further seeking an order directing that, after the consultations, a former Chief Justice be appointed to the Council within 48 hours.
Mr Buabeng also wants the court to make a declaration that the prolonged vacancy renders the Council of State improperly constituted and, based on his interpretation of Article 89, unable to lawfully continue operating in its present form.
The case places the constitutional composition of the Council of State before the Supreme Court and could provide judicial clarification on the implications of a prolonged vacancy in one of the positions prescribed under Article 89.
The suit also puts renewed focus on the constitutional timelines and procedures governing appointments to the Council of State and the extent to which an unfilled position affects the validity of the Council’s operations
