Miracles Aboagye invokes Article 127(1) in scathing open letter, warning that objective judicial impartiality is being eroded by a pattern of executive proximity.
The Chief Justice of Ghana, His Lordship Justice Paul Kwadwo Baffoe-Bonnie, is facing a formal public challenge to his conduct, after Communications Director for Dr. Bawumia, Dennis Miracles Aboagye published an open letter accusing him of engaging in social and official proximity to the NDC government at a level that is damaging public confidence in the independence of Ghana’s judiciary.
The letter, addressed to the Chief Justice and copied to the Council of State, the General Legal Council, and the Ghana Bar Association, is the most direct and comprehensive public challenge to the Chief Justice’s conduct since his swearing-in in November 2025.
At its constitutional core, the letter rests on a distinction between what legal scholars call ‘subjective impartiality’, the actual state of a judge’s mind, and ‘objective impartiality’, whether a reasonable observer would conclude that the judge might be influenced by extraneous factors. Aboagye argues that while he accepts the Chief Justice’s personal integrity for the purposes of the letter, it is the latter dimension that is failing.
“When the Chief Justice travels in the official delegation of the Vice President of a government whose conduct is before the courts, a reasonable and fair-minded Ghanaian, not a partisan, not a cynic, but a reasonable observer, cannot be faulted for concluding that the independence of the judiciary may be in question.”
The letter catalogues three overlapping concerns. First, the Chief Justice’s regular attendance at private social functions, funerals, parties, and social gatherings, alongside NDC government ministers and party functionaries. Second, his presence as a member of the Vice President’s official delegation to Toronto last Tuesday to visit the Black Stars ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Third, the appointment by the Mahama administration of his wife, Patience Baffoe-Bonnie, as Director-General of the Ghana Prisons Service.
‘Individually, each of these facts carries an explanation,’ the letter concedes. ‘Cumulatively, they construct a picture that Ghana’s citizens, legal community, and international partners find deeply disquieting.’
The letter traces the broader institutional context, noting that Justice Baffoe-Bonnie assumed office at a moment when public trust in the judiciary had already been severely strained by the controversial removal of his predecessor, Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, a removal that a significant portion of the legal community viewed as politically motivated.
‘You arrived at your swearing-in with seventeen years of Supreme Court service,’ the letter states. ‘You pledged to respect the separation of powers, protect the Constitution, and ensure the judiciary remains free from improper influence. A growing number of Ghanaians now feel that covenant is under serious strain.’
The Ghana Bar Association, one of the institutions copied on the letter, has in recent months itself raised concerns about judicial independence. A spokesperson for the GBA declined to comment on the specific letter but confirmed it had been received.