Attorney General Dr. Dominic Ayine has cautioned professional and legal bodies against inviting external influence into Ghana’s constitutional and judicial matters.
Speaking at the Ghana Bar Association’s Annual Conference in Wa on Monday, September 15, Dr. Ayine stressed that while international collaborations are useful for strengthening professional standards, they must not extend into attempts to shape Ghana’s constitutional politics.
We should desist from the temptation of inviting foreign interference in our internal constitutional processes. As a professional body, there is absolutely nothing wrong with forming relationships with like-minded foreign associations. Such relationships are necessary for cross-fertilization of ideas on professional matters such as standards.
“That is where it should end. Interference in constitutional politics risks violating the principle that sovereignty resides in the people of Ghana, in whose name and for whose benefits the powers of government are to be exercised,” the Attorney General stated.
His remarks follow interventions by the Bar Council of England and Wales and the Commonwealth Lawyers Association, which recently urged President John Dramani Mahama to reconsider the suspension of Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo.
The two bodies, in a joint statement dated August 14, described Ghana as a country with a strong tradition of upholding the rule of law, and called for the Chief Justice’s immediate reinstatement.
Dr. Ayine’s comments underline the government’s position that Ghana’s constitutional processes must remain the preserve of its citizens, even as international organisations express concern over developments in the judiciary.
