Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, the nominee for Chief Justice, will not go through a second vetting, according to Joseph Osei-Owusu, chairman of the Appointments Committee of Parliament.
This choice was made during a thorough vetting session in Parliament on May 26, during which Minority MPs wanted an additional opportunity to examine the Supreme Court ruling that led to James Gyakye Quayson’s expulsion from the House of Representatives.
The Minority MPs said that they were unable to thoroughly interrogate the nominee for Chief Justice because they did not have access to the written justifications for the court’s decision.
Sadly, the Committee’s meeting today, Friday, May 26, came to a deadlock because no decision was made over whether to recommend the nominee for House approval.
However, Mr. Osei-Owusu, the chairman of the committee, said that there is no need to postpone the decision and that the nominee will be accepted by a majority vote.
“It is our practice that, any time that we are done with a public hearing, the Committee sits and considers whether to recommend the person or not and so the conclusion we came to was that there is no consensus. You will recall that [Mahama] Ayariga made a statement that unless they get a copy of the case involving the Assin North MP, they will not support the nominee.
“They [Minority Caucus] came to the vetting with a position; do it for me, or I don’t. We went through the vetting, and we are satisfied that there is no basis for deferring the decision because you want to read the judgment. They also argued that because they have not read the judgment, they won’t support her, but it is a one-off event. We recommend her for approval by a majority decision.”
Joseph Osei-Owusu
The Minority Demands Gyakye Quayson’s Verdict
Before voting on the President’s choice for Chief Justice, Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, the Minority Caucus in Parliament asked that the judgment against James Gyakye Quayson, a former Assin North MP, be made public by June 7.
“The Minority Members on the Appointments Committee of Parliament did not vote on the President’s nominee for the position of Chief Justice today due to the unavailability of the reasoned judgement of the Supreme Court in the matter of Hon. James Gyakye Quayson.
“It is important to state that the Appointments Committee not long ago in 2019 vetted and approved this same nominee as a justice of the Supreme Court. However, it was imperative for Members of The Minority on the Committee to evaluate the decisions of the nominee on all other cases, including the James Gyakye Quayson case since the vetting in 2019.”
Minority Caucus
Following a meeting of the Appointments Committee of Parliament and its review of the Supreme Court Justice, the Caucus decided not to vote on the candidate.
Before making a decision, the group demands to see the entire judgment. In a news release, the Minority Chief Whip stated that the Minority anticipates the Majority’s cooperation in its desire to conclude the vetting.
“We have duly communicated our challenge to our colleagues on the Majority side and expect their cooperation.”
Minority Caucus
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