JUSTICE FRED K. AWAUAH vs. HON. CHIEF JUSTICE, THE IMPEACHMENT COMMITTEE ON JUSTICE AWUAH AND THE HON. ATTORNEY GENERAL [2019]DLCA8854

JUSTICE FRED K. AWAUAH vs. HON. CHIEF JUSTICE, THE IMPEACHMENT COMMITTEE ON JUST... [2019]DLCA8854

Date	2019-02-07
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL NO.H1/247/2018
Citation No.	[2019]DLCA8854

F.G. KORBIEH J.A. (PRESIDING)

CECILIA H. SOWAH (MS.) J.A.

AMA A. GAISIE (MRS.) J.A.

MR. KWAME ADUABENG YANKEYERA FOR THE APPELLANT

MRS. ELFREDA DANKYI (PSA) FOR THE RESPONDENTS

[2019]DLCA8854
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >JUSTICE
FRED K. AWAUAH<o:p></o:p>(APPELLANT)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>HON. CHIEF JUSTICE, THE IMPEACHMENT
COMMITTEE ON JUSTICE AWUAH AND THE HON. ATTORNEY GENERAL<o:p></o:p>(RESPONDENTS)<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>[COURT OF APPEAL, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">

CIVIL APPEAL
NO.H1/247/2018&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;DATE: 7TH
FEBRUARY, 2019<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>MR.
KWAME ADUABENG YANKEYERA FOR THE APPELLANT<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">

MRS. ELFREDA DANKYI (PSA) FOR THE RESPONDENTS<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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F.G. KORBIEH J.A. (PRESIDING), CECILIA H.
SOWAH (MS.) J.A., AMA A. GAISIE (MRS.) J.A.<o:p></o:p>

</div>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>F.G. KORBIEH, J.A.<o:p></o:p>All parties
in this appeal belong to the justice delivery system in this country in one way
or the other. The plaintiff/appellant (hereinafter referred to as the
appellant) was at all material times a judge of the High Court stationed at
Koforidua when the incidence(s) or occurrence(s) leading to his impeachment
process and the subsequent court action happened. The 1st
defendant/respondent (hereinafter referred to as the 1st respondent)
is the Honourable Chief Justice and by law, the head of the Judiciary and the
Judicial Service of the Republic of Ghana as well as the Judicial Council, a
body set up by and under the Constitution to perform a number of functions
including the “consideration and discussion of matters relating to the
functions of the Judiciary and thereby assist the Chief Justice in the
performance of [her] duties with a view to ensuring efficiency and effective
realization of justice…” &nbsp;The 2nd
defendant/respondent (hereinafter referred to as the 2nd respondent)
is a committee that was set up by the Judicial Council pursuant to
constitutional provisions for the purpose of investigating the conduct of the
plaintiff/appellant and the 3rd defendant/respondent is the Chief
Legal Advisor or Officer of the government (to put it in its simplest form). The
saga leading to this appeal began when the appellant, then a High Court judge
stationed in Koforidua, met and collected a paltry GHC30.00 from one Kwabena
Anyan who was pursuing a case in the High Court in Koforidua. Subsequently however,
the same Kwabena Anyan paid various sums of money into the appellant’s Ghana
Commercial Bank (GCB) account because, according to Kwabena Anyan, the
appellant had given his account number to the former and asked him to make the
lodgments into that account so that the latter would give a favourable ruling
for his family in a case titled The Republic v. Registrar, Kwawu Traditional
Council, Mpraeso, ex parte Opanyin Kwabena Anyan. The said Opanyin Kwabena
Anyan, having failed to obtain a favourable ruling from the appellant, lodged a
written complaint with the 1st respondent against the appellant to
the effect that he had given various bribes to the appellant to influence the
outcome of a case before the appellant but had failed in his effort. (See
exhibit on page 236 of ROA) This complaint was corroborated by another
complaint lodged by the complainant’s lawyer at the time, Kwaku Baah, Esq. who
proceeded to attach various exhibits of copies of the payment slips of the
lodgments at the GCB Bank to his statement. (See exhibit on pages 237 to 244 of
the ROA.) Upon receipt of the complaint, the 1st respondent took the
matter to the Judicial Council which set up the 2nd respondent (chaired
by Her Ladyship, Justice Sophia Adinyira, JSC) to investigate the complaint and
to report. The 2nd defendant/respondent took evidence from the
appellant and Opanyin Kwabena Anyan and upon completion of its work, submitted
its report to the Judicial Council; recommending that a case of bribery had
been made out against the appellant. Based on the 2nd
defendant/respondent’s recommendation, a petition was sent to the President of
the Republic by the 1st respondent recommending that the appellant
be removed from office for Stated Misbehaviour and Incompetence. The President
in turn directed the 1st respondent to take the necessary steps in
accordance with the Constitution to institute impeachment proceedings against
the appellant. In January, 2016 the appellant was summoned to appear before the
2nd respondent on impeachment proceedings that alleged bribery
against him. On the 8/3/2016 he commenced an action in the Labour Division of
the High Court, Accra against the three respondents for the following reliefs:<o:p></o:p>a)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; A
declaration that the 1st defendant erred in making a finding of
prima facie case against the plaintiff based on the findings of the
Disciplinary Committee report.<o:p></o:p>b)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; A
declaration that the 1st defendant has become a petitioner,
prosecutor and adjudicator [in] a case that is obviously her own.<o:p></o:p>c)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; A declaration
that the Honourable Chief Justice in the performance of her administrative
duties under article 146 of 1992 Constitution cannot interpret the term “Stated
Misbehaviour” without reference to the Supreme Court in accordance with article
130.<o:p></o:p>