Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has expressed significant concerns over the National Democratic Congress (NDC) modifying its position on the size of Ghana’s Supreme Court.
This allegation arises after President John Dramani Mahama’s recent appointment of three new judges.
As the Appointments Committee of Parliament geared up for the vetting process set for August 27, 2026, the Minority has voiced its displeasure, highlighting that their concerns lie not with the candidates’ credentials or the President’s authority, but with the expedited nature of the procedure.
Instead, he questioned what he described as a contradiction between the NDC’s current position and its criticism of similar appointments under former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
Afenyo-Markin recalled that the NDC had previously described attempts to increase the number of Supreme Court justices as “packing” the court.
He argued that President Mahama’s latest nominations should therefore be assessed against the same standard the NDC applied while in opposition.
Afenyo-Markin said that Parliament had already sanctioned seven justices under Mahama’s administration, implying that a more measured approach is necessary, particularly given the absence of urgent vacancies requiring swift appointments.
The dispute is not limited to the number of judges. The Minority has also challenged the timetable for vetting the three nominees, arguing that the process should not be rushed and that there is no immediate vacancy requiring urgent appointments.
Afenyo-Markin has asked that the Minority’s objection and the committee’s eventual decision be included in the report submitted to Parliament under Order 215 of the Standing Orders.
The three nominees are Justice Sophia Bernasko-Essah, Justice Edward Amoako Asante and private legal practitioner Anthony Forson Jr., a former President of the Ghana Bar Association. Reports indicate that the Minority has acknowledged the nominees’ professional credentials despite its objections to the process.
The disagreement has therefore shifted attention away from the nominees’ individual qualifications to a wider political debate over how Ghana’s apex court should be constituted and whether the same standards should apply regardless of which political party is in government.
