‘Chief Justice was talking as a citizen; you have to look at the context in which he made the statement’ — Martin Kpebu

Lawyer Martin Kpebu has defended Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie’s controversial remarks about the performance of state-owned institutions, arguing that the comments must be assessed within the context in which they were made.

Although he conceded that the optics surrounding the Chief Justice’s remarks were not favourable, Mr Kpebu said Justice Baffoe-Bonnie was speaking in his capacity as a citizen and not necessarily making a political statement.

“The Chief Justice was talking as a citizen. You have to look at the context in which he made the statement,” he said on The Key Points on TV3 on Saturday, September 5.

He, however, urged critics to consider the circumstances surrounding the Chief Justice’s comments before drawing conclusions about his intentions.

According to him, the members of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) who are calling for the head of the Chief Justice have shown from the beginning that they never liked him (Paul Baffoe-Bonnie).

“The NPP has never liked Chief Justice Baffour-Bonnie, even though I agree the optics don’t look good for the comments he made,” he said.

Mr Kpebu’s comments come amid criticism of Justice Baffoe-Bonnie following his recent visits to state institutions, including the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) and the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF).

During the engagements, the Chief Justice praised the performance of some state-owned institutions and remarked that, ” “looking at the recent performance of some of the State institutions, one wonders what we have been doing in the past eight years.”

Meanwhile, Judicial Secretary Musah Ahmed has sought to clarify the circumstances surrounding the Chief Justice’s remarks, saying they were made without malice.

In a press release dated September 4, Mr Ahmed said the Chief Justice was aware of the mixed reactions generated by his observations.

“The Chief Justice has taken note of the mixed public reaction to some observations he made recently on the performance of State-owned entities during an outreach engagement.

“The observations were made in good faith, and were not intended to serve a purpose inimical to judicial independence,” Mr Ahmed wrote.