Remove President completely from judicial appointments – Yaw Nsarkoh

Former Executive Vice President of Unilever Ghana and Nigeria, Yaw Nsarkoh, has called for the establishment of an independent authority to oversee appointments to Ghana’s superior courts, arguing that the President should have no role in the process.

He says the current appointment arrangements expose the judiciary to political influence and create conditions that could discourage judges from making decisions that displease those in power.

Speaking at a JoyNews and An Amalgam of Professionals event in Accra on Tuesday, October 20, Mr Nsarkoh described the judiciary as the last institutional line of defence in a functioning democracy and urged Ghanaians to protect it from partisan capture.

He argued that judicial appointments and promotions have become politicised under successive governments, with the two major political parties raising concerns about the process when in opposition but exercising appointment powers when in government.

“We need to set-up an independent appointments authority for judges of the superior courts, that is, de facto and de jure, much, much more insulated from the executive influence of what is, in reality in our current constitution, an imperial presidency,” he said at Alisa Hotel.

Mr Nsarkoh stressed that the proposed authority must be genuinely independent, with the President excluded from nominations, appointments and consultations that could amount to indirect control.

He also questioned whether judges seeking promotion could feel free to deliver rulings that run counter to the interests of the government responsible for their elevation.

The former corporate executive argued that the perceived vulnerability of the judiciary to political influence risks undermining public confidence in the justice system.

He urged Ghana to consider institutional reforms that would make judicial appointments more transparent and protect the independence of judges, regardless of the party in power.