The Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), a civil society organisation focused on democracy, good governance and public accountability, has called on the Chief Justice, His Lordship Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, to exercise restraint and discretion in his public engagements, warning that recent comments attributed to him could create a perception of political bias and undermine confidence in the Judiciary.
The call follows remarks the Chief Justice made on September 2, 2026, during visits to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) and the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) with members of the Council for Legal Education and Training.
At MIIF, according to CDD-Ghana, the Chief Justice praised the current management while questioning the institution’s performance over the previous eight years. At SSNIT, he reportedly contrasted the organisation’s current operations with earlier attempts to sell some of its properties and lamented that the management of the country’s affairs had previously “sunk so low.”
In a statement issued yesterday, CDD-Ghana argued that the Chief Justice’s comparison of the performance of the current administration with that of its predecessor risked creating the perception that he had crossed into partisan commentary.
“Such commentary creates a perception of political bias, compromises the Judiciary’s non-partisan mandate, and risks breaching the Code of Conduct for Judges and Magistrates,” the democracy and governance advocacy organisation said.
CDD-Ghana stressed that although judges were not expected to isolate themselves from public life, the nature of their office required a high degree of restraint to preserve public confidence in the courts.
The Centre invoked the long-established principle that justice must not only be done, but must also be seen to be done, arguing that judicial neutrality must be evident not only in the decisions of judges but also in their public conduct and pronouncements.
According to CDD-Ghana, the controversy comes at a particularly sensitive time for the Judiciary, which it said was grappling with declining public confidence.
Citing findings from the Afrobarometer Round 10 survey conducted in 2024, the Centre said only 35 per cent of Ghanaians expressed trust in the courts, representing a 21-percentage-point decline from the level recorded in 2012.
It further said 62 per cent of respondents believed judicial decisions were influenced by powerful interests, while about half of those surveyed doubted whether an ordinary person could obtain a fair trial.
CDD-Ghana therefore urged the Chief Justice to lead by example by strictly adhering to the Code of Conduct for Judges and Magistrates and exercising caution in public commentary that could be interpreted as endorsing or condemning a particular political administration.
The Centre’s intervention adds to the public debate over the Chief Justice’s September 2 remarks, which have attracted criticism from sections of the public.
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