Group ‘shows’ political colour at News Confab

(From L to R) Dr. Clement A. Apaak, Convener of the forum and Dr. Samuel Buame of the University of Ghana at the news conference.
Posted on: www.dailyguideghana.com

By William Yaw Owusu

Wednesday June 8, 2011.
A GROUP calling itself, Forum for Governance and Justice on Monday held a news conference under the guise of promoting good governance and justice for all but ended up making statements that clearly showed they may be pursuing a political agenda.

From their statements it was clear they are doing the bidding of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) and may not necessarily be seeking the welfare of the ordinary Ghanaian.

They had called the news conference which was poorly attended to lambast the judiciary for victimizing four lawyers who had claimed there is widespread corruption in the judiciary. As a result of this, the Association of Magistrates and Judges reported them to the General Legal Council for appropriate sanctions.

The group said at a news conference in Accra yesterday that they “are not for or against any group” yet they went ahead to make statements that clearly showed they were an anti New Patriotic Party (NPP) group which believes the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) is in ‘bed’ with the NPP regime.

They said they did not understand why the GBA had refused to come to the defense of the four affected lawyers who they noted are being deprived of their right to seek justice by the judiciary through the Association of Magistrates and Judges.

Dr. Clement Apaak, convener of the forum who read the statement said “we hope that this dereliction of duty on the part of the Ghana Bar Association is not a carry-over from the bizarre stance not to comment on human rights violations under the Kufuor regime.”

He said the statement made by the four lawyers to the effect that there is widespread corruption in the judiciary was an “innocuous comment” therefore they did not understand why the judges should victimize them.

The group added that it was “completely unacceptable that having exercised their inalienable right to free speech and commented on the matter of corruption in the judiciary, these four lawyers should be ostracized and prevented from practicing their profession from which they derive their livelihood.’

Apaak said “we find it exceedingly regrettable that judges who are the bastion of our freedoms and rights as citizens of Ghana and in whose courts we seek refuge whenever our liberties have come under threat should now be at the forefront of efforts to curtail the freedoms of individuals contributing to a debate about judicial accountability.”

He accused some members of the bench of taking “partisan postures” under the banner of the Association of Magistrates and Judges whenever the public decide to draw attention to “serious flaws in the administration of justice.”

Dr. Apaak said the decision by the judges to boycott the four lawyers’ hearings for criticizing the judiciary at a forum organized by the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) “represents a frontal attack on the independence of the commission.”

He said the decision to include the NCCE Boss Laari Bimi in what it calls the “illegal ban” is an attempt to “stifle him and prevent him from doing his work as head of a constitutional body.

“We find it inconceivable that while the judiciary has always defended their independence, an amorphous group like the Association of Magistrates and Judges whose constitutionality is in doubt can dictate what happens in our court rooms.”

During the question and answer segment, Dr. Samuel Buame, a lecturer at the University of Ghana who is a member of the forum said the issue of injustice should never be endorsed since it has the tendency to undermine the democratic development of the country.