Reports making the rounds suggest, President John Dramani Mahama is set to announce Justice Baffoe-Bonnie as the new Chief Justice following the dismissal of Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Torkornoo.
Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, the most senior Supreme Court judge, was appointed by President Mahama to act as Chief Justice during the investigation process.
He is now tipped to be confirmed as the substantive head of the judiciary.
Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie was appointed to the Supreme Court in June 2008 by then-President John Agyekum Kufuor and is among the most senior justices of the apex court.
Should Mahama name Justice Baffoe-Bonnie as Chief Justice parliament would be expected to vet Justice Baffoe-Bonnie before his swearing-in as Ghana’s next Chief Justice.
President Mahama is now expected to name former Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo’s successor in the coming days.
Meanwhile, President John Mahama sacked the Chief Justice, Her Ladyship Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo, from office with immediate effect after he received a first report from the five-member committee he constituted to investigate three petitions brought against the Chief Justice.
Hours after President Mahama received the committee reports, Chief Justice Torkornoo was sacked with immediate effect.
A statement from the presidency stated, “President John Dramani Mahama has, in accordance with Article 146(9) of the 1992 Constitution, removed the Chief Justice, Her Ladyship Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo, from office with immediate effect”.
“This follows receipt of the report of the Committee constituted under Article 146(6) to inquire into a petition submitted by a Ghanaian citizen, Mr. Daniel Ofori. After considering the petition and the evidence, the Committee found that the grounds of stated misbehaviour under Article 146(1) had been established and recommended her removal from office.
“Under Article 146(9), the President is required to act in accordance with the Committee’s recommendation,” the statement concluded.
Also, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, the minister of Government Communications, has said the government cannot reveal the reasons behind the sacking of Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo.
According to Kwakye Ofosu, the Mahama government cannot do that due to constitutional restrictions.
Speaking on Channel One TV, Kwakye Ofosu stated, “The committee recommended the removal of the CJ. Because as you are fully aware, Article 146 does not permit disclosure of the proceedings of the committee,” he said.
“But the Chief Justice has been officially informed of her removal and the reasons behind it, in a letter sent through the President’s Secretary. A warrant, as prescribed by Article 146, was also issued.”
He added, “I am not permitted by law to make any disclosures beyond the fact that the President has complied with the recommendations of the committee”.
“Jubilee House cannot breach the Constitution of Ghana, which bars us from discussing details surrounding this entire proceeding.”
He further added that Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo’s removal from office was entirely grounded in constitutional provisions.
Kwakye Ofosu stated, “The role of the President is clearly defined under Article 146, and since March this year, the President has strictly adhered to the constitutional tenets and has done everything in consonance with constitutional provision.”
“So it must be emphasised that we have arrived at this juncture because of what the Constitution says and not necessarily what the President believes.”
However a leaked document on social media concluded that Justice Torkornoo had engaged in conduct amounting to “stated misbehaviour” under Article 146(1).
The Key finding read, “Unlawful expenditure of public funds: The committee held that the Chief Justice caused the Judicial Service to pay travel expenses for her husband and daughter during private holiday trips in 2023, including per diem allowances. This, the report stated, was an “avoidable and reckless dissipation of public funds.”
Abuse of discretionary power: The committee found that her handling of the transfer of one Mr. Baiden breached Article 296(a) and (b) of the Constitution, describing the act as misbehaviour.
Interference in judicial appointments: The report also noted that she sought to bypass the established process for nominating Justices of the Supreme Court, contrary to precedent set in the Ghana Bar Association case. The committee concluded this amounted to misbehaviour”.
The committee subsequently recommended her removal in accordance with Article 146(7). President Mahama, bound by Article 146(9), which makes the President’s action mandatory once such a recommendation is made, formally removed Justice Torkornoo by Warrant of Removal under the Presidential Seal.
See the post below:
Mahama moves to install Baffoe-Bonnie as new Chief Justice after Torkornoo’s exit pic.twitter.com/ZOfU2o0GYo
— Ghana Chronicles (@_GhChronicles) September 2, 2025