About The Judiciary, Fairness and All

"I think the tendency of a judge to pronounce one innocent even when he or she might be guilty is natural and often happens psychologically. The circumstances of a person at the time a crime is committed can also determine the outcome of the trial against that person. As a judge if a pregnant woman is brought before me for having committed murder, i do not think i would send her to the gallows. In the first place she is caring a child who did not take part in the crime. In this case the appropriate thing to do would be for me to give her a minimal sentence of say 6 months especially if it is a crime of passion. We are humans and our feelings and emotions are very much likely to influence our decision making."

                                                                              Selestina Asumah (University of Ghana)

"These days you can easily grease the palm of the judges of our courts in order to get judgement in your favour.It has happened on many occasions and this has led innocent people to gaol. One other problem is that the judiciary is a human institution and are likely to make mistakes in the delivery of justice.We can only hope that the situation gets better."

                                                                               Justice Afari (University of Ghana)

"In many instances over the past years the ruling of the courts have not met the expectation of many Ghanaians. Of course these days a lawyer is no longer able to predict the outcome of a case in court even when you are convinced that you have a good case. The integrity and sanctity of our courts is diminishing by the hour and i believe someone must step in and avert a crises in the not too distant future.Crime is on the increase in Ghana today because no one fears the courts any longer.Evil now triumphs over good."

                                                                              Emma Agbedjeku (University of Ghana )

" Judges of our judiciary are humans and i do believe they can't be absolved from the numerous cases of bribery and corruption that has afflicted our courts. However, i am of the strong conviction that the influence of judges by unscrupulous individuals in society can be curbed. We need to give our judges the incentives needed like housing and others. It is a problem, people are not being given justice. The delivery of justice today has become the preserve of a few in the society who take undue advantage of their positions."

                                                                                   Evelyn Kangah (University of Ghana)

"The judges are professionals doing their work in the system and they certainly know the law and that is how they apply them.They are humans and are likely to be influenced.Not many have received justice from our courts. but it is these same people who have taken care our nation for all these years. Let us pray that things get better, but for now they are all we have."

                                                                               Theodore Agbezorlie (University of Ghana)

" We must blame and start posing questions of the system that allow some of these judges to find their way to Supreme Court. If you have the situation where it is the President who by the constitution has to appoint a judge to the courts then there is the likelihood of these judges being influenced. There was a time in this country when the Former President re-constituted the courts in order to change the initial verdict of that court.It is the people who must appoint the judge and not the President. Former President Kufuor packed the courts with judges and President Mills can also do likewise.There must be a fixed number of judges that can be appointed to the Supreme Courts."

                                                                        Orlapu Anasenchor (University of Ghana)

"Times like these demands men and women who are willing to uphold the rule of law and ensure that justice is delivered without fear or favour. Judges are human and are likely to go contrary to the procedure of dispensing justice to the suffering masses of the people.I am aware of the ensuing debate in the public about the judges and the ruling they make.Recently the commonwealth Hall of the University of Ghana won a case against the administration of the school and one would have expected the otherwise.By extension you can say that the administration or the school itself is a periphery of the Ministry of Education, but the students won.There is obvious some rot at the Courts but we can do something about it."

                                                                                  Araba Amanfu (University of Ghana)

" My personal view is that most judges show solidarity with the ruling government and are more likely to make pronouncements in their favour. It is no secret that the judges of our courts have in most instances delivered ruling in sharp contrast with the dictates of our constitution.For instance majority of Ghanaians are of the view firm believe that the Tsatsu Tsikata(Former Director of the Ghana National Petroleum Co-orporation) trial which took more than 6 years was teleguided. In the course of the trial he was even asked to defend himself in clear breach of judicial proceedings. I hope we have not forgotten how ex-President Kufuor packed the courts with the judges who made a mess of our judiciary. It is very much obvious the Attorney-General is losing her cases in court because of the undeniable fact that most of our courts bear allegiance to the previous regime. Why, we know some of these judges and where they stand on some of these issues.Who can deny the fact that some judges even write their rulings before the trial processes are exhausted."

                                                                                Karima Osman (University of Ghana)

" I would want to refrain from commenting on the issue of the judges and our courts because i am a Jehovah Witness. We do not send people to court but others do that to us. We are all imperfect. Until the Kingdom of God comes back to this earth and earthly kingdoms are done away with, as in Daniel 2:44, there would be bloodshed, murder and all sorts of injustices all of which are an indication that the kingdom of God is near."

                                                                                  Barfi Tony (University of Ghana)