By Dr. Kojo Pumpuni Asante, Director of Programmes and Policy Engagement at the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), contends that the Supreme Court should abstain from adjudicating certain political cases.
In his view, prolonged involvement of the apex court in political matters may compromise the principle of checks and balances, leading to increased judicial entanglement in politics.
During an appearance on JoyNews’ Newsfile on April 13, Asante proposed that in cases of political disagreement, politicians should seek resolution through alternative institutions rather than relying solely on the court.
“Generally, increasingly and particularly around election matters, there is this discretion that the Chief Justice has in empanelling. It has created a lot of perception around bias and independence of the court and so on and so forth.
“I think sometimes, there are cases that the Supreme Court should not be dealing with. These are political matters that probably need to stay in Parliament or other places because the more you take on these cases, anytime you take a decision, one person loses,” he said.
Dr. Pumpuni further emphasized that the court should seek legal justification to abstain from adjudicating certain cases.
“There are cases where the Supreme Court can decline on the basis of law not just on wimp. Because when you encourage it, if politicians can’t resolve their matter, everything they are bringing it to your court. You turn the court into an extension of [Parliament] and then your checks and balances become a problem,” he stressed.
Furthermore, he noted that in many African countries, disputes arise after every election, resulting in the apex court constantly presiding over political matters throughout the year if not regulated.
“We have to look at the legal arrangement that you are making to limit and mitigate that problem. Otherwise, if you look across West Africa now every election there is election adjudication and it is rampant. So it is not even the results that are being contested,” he added.
