Some media reports, last Wednesday, were to the effect that the Auditor General had detected massive rot in the Judicial Service. Either a Service building had been shoddily constructed for the self-gain of some unscrupulous employee, or a structure that should have long been completed had been left unfinished. One report added that, at the Fiapre Circuit Court B, near Sunyani in the Bono-Ahafo Region, an accountant could not produce statements from the GCB Bank to “authenticate total revenue of GHC193,393.20 purportedly deposited with the bank.” There were more improprieties.
If gold rusts,…
If gold rusts, what will iron do? That is the old adage that ran through the minds of the millions of Ghanaians while they called for the heads of the 34 judges and over a 100 Service staff that were caught on audiovisual tapes taking bribes, or extorting monies from litigants two years ago. You remember Tiger Eye PI? The first port of call for any aggrieved person and the final arbiter in all disputes in the nation must be run by people who do not allow corruption to cloud their judgement.
When Ghanaians anxiously waited for unprecedented action to be taken against the judges and Judicial Service staff and only feeble action was coming, some of us begun to express discomfort. I remember writing a News Commentary piece that was read on TV Africa under the caption: After Judges’ Bribery Shows, What Next?
Red tapeism
A while later, the Police Administration commenced investigations into the alleged involvement of seven personnel in the corruption scandal that had rocked the country’s Judiciary and some security agencies in the Anas expose.’ The Director General of the Police Criminal Investigation Department at the time, Prosper Kwame Agblor, was quoted as saying, “an allegation has been made and we have to also hear from them during these investigations and, depending on the evidence gathered, a docket would be sent to the Attorney General for prosecution.” While totally upholding the suspects’ right to be heard, I had some reservation with the fact that it was the selfsame Police Administration that was going to investigate the seven police personnel caught committing what was clear to the ordinary Ghanaian to be crime. And, what next were we told? The police had written to the Judicial Secretary for the release of the judges and the Judicial Service staff implicated in the scandals to assist the police in its investigations. Mr. Kwame Ablor said when people were engaged in essential services, the police couldn’t just arrest them, since “you have to write to their employers to release them.” Well said, but, we thought we heard these judges and magistrates had already been interdicted and that their duties would be given to others on the bench without blemish? Did the police still need to go ask permission to arrest those indicted by the Anas report and were on interdiction? I wondered. For clarity sake, I implored the Police Administration and the Judiciary in one of my writings to come out to tell Ghanaians whether the 180 officials of the Judicial Service – including 34 judges – caught on camera taking bribes and extorting monies from litigants still occupied the courtrooms? If so, doing what? Who would be confident litigating under Judge Asomasi who was known to have freed a rape, drug or murder suspect for cash, sheep – sorry, goat – yams, massaging or hot sex? I agreed that there certainly must be rules and regulations governing the investigation of so-called essential service providers. Nonetheless, I humbly insisted the Police Establishment and the Judiciary should let Ghanaians see justice to have been done, even if for once.
Tradition continues
Whether or not the Tiger Eye’s expose’ that shocked the world has since been acted on satisfactorily is a matter for every fair-minded Ghanaian to judge. What is unambiguous is that no deterrence has been served. It is the reason corruption continues to rock the Judicial Service. The detections by the Auditor General are only a miniscule tip of the iceberg. Still, the posture of many courts is like “Truth is no defence for defamation.” We heard of an instance in the 1980s where a court threw out a case because the prosecution had said the defendant sold ‘55’ cigarettes, instead of saying ‘555’ cigarettes, above the approved price. Though the price control regime has since been scrapped, the use of technicalities to free obvious criminals is still rampant. It was also said that a magistrate released a suspect because the plaintiff incorrectly said he stole his plantain with his right hand; instead of saying it was with the left hand that he cut the plantain.
What am I saying here? What I’m driving at is that we have too many instances where commonsense, natural wisdom and fairness suggest that a case verdict should go in a certain direction, but, it goes in a completely opposite direction. At times, almost everybody in court; at times almost everybody watching the telecast court proceedings concludes that fairness has not been delivered; justice has not be done the applicant, or the defendant. The members of the Bench and the Bar that often seek to defend the shocking court verdicts would contend that the issues had to be looked at on technicalities. Often, they would say that it is only lawyers who know the law and are entitled to interpret the law. Non-lawyers are not supposed to appreciate the validity or otherwise of a judgement.
Public lose confidence
All the complicated legal arguments and – at times – the self-conceitedness of some lawyers notwithstanding; more and more people are losing confidence in the Judiciary and the Judicial Service. People prefer summoning others who have offended them to the palaces, and shrines, instead of the courts; to the churches and mosques, instead of the courts. Confidence is fast eroding in our Judicial System, especially after Tiger Eye PI’s three-hour expose’ of crass corruption engaged in by magistrates, judges, bailiffs, registrars and some other court officials came to naught like the many shocking scandals unearthed before it.
Image redemption
The only way to redeem the sinking image of our judges, court staff, and Judicial Service is – not to tolerate the use of complicated legal arguments to free criminals or pussyfoot with convicted criminals – but to punish them according to law. Another way to redeem the image of the Judiciary is to single out judges Tiger Eye PI failed to bribe – and others who have demonstrably abided by their calling’s ethos – for praise, or speedy promotion. That kind of policy serves as motivation and reminds the populace that NOT EVERY JUDGE IS CORRUPT! The only way to restore total confidence in the Judiciary and Judicial Service is to initiate a thorough and faithful probe of the whole court system – even if it will take twice the time it took Tiger Eye – to weed out every single fraudster, extortionist, bribe negotiator, bribe collector and pervert of justice from the service. If you say that is bound to be expensive and cumbersome; you may try encouraging us to play the ostrich.
To draw the curtain on this one, Ghana Today humbly appeals to Her Ladyship the Chief Justice to deal most professionally with the many culprits of corruption exposed in Ghana in the Eyes of God; Epic of Injustice that remain unpunished. For, the screams, anguish, disgust and ridicule expressed by the thousands who watched the video across the country may turn into scorn for, and animosity against, the Judiciary and the Judicial Service tomorrow.
Recap: Nana’s swearing-in
To draw the curtain on this one, Ghana Today implores the President to play the complimentary role it takes to curb the engulfing corruption in Ghana – including the one that is nibbling at the Judicial Service. We repeat: If gold rusts, what will iron do? If judges and the Judicial Service get soaked in rot, what should we realistically expect from businesspeople and the jobless? We count on the President because we still vividly remember the Head of State charging the Judiciary at his investiture, January 7, this year, to “inspire confidence in the citizens, so we can all see the courts as the ultimate arbiters when disputes arise, as they would. A Ghanaian judge must be a reassuring presence and epitome of fairness.” True, Nana President; but, as humans, we will only do the things you inspect; not the things you expect!
Today Ghana
…with A. C. Ohene