NPP asks Chief Justice to retract comments or resign and join NDC

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has called on Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie to retract comments it describes as partisan or resign from the Judiciary and join the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

The call is contained in a statement issued on September 3, 2026, by the NPP General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong.

According to the NPP, the demand follows a video circulating publicly in which the Chief Justice is heard making comparative remarks about the performance of state institutions.

In the said video, Justice Baffoe-Bonnie is quoted as saying: “Sometimes when we hear how well some state organisations are doing now, we wonder what we really have been doing in the past eight years.”

The party argues that such a comment, which it interprets as suggesting that the current NDC government and its chief executives are performing better than the previous NPP administration, is inappropriate for the head of the Judiciary.

The NPP said the Chief Justice, as head of an independent arm of government, must remain politically neutral and uphold his judicial oath to administer justice without fear, favour, affection or ill will.

The statement also raised concerns about what it described as the Chief Justice’s frequent presence at events involving political appointees of the current government, saying it could erode public confidence in judicial neutrality.

It further questioned the Chief Justice’s reported expression of commitment to ensuring the success of President John Dramani Mahama’s agenda, at a time when some persons affiliated to the NPP are facing prosecution under government’s Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL) initiative.

“A Chief Justice swears a single oath, and it is to the Constitution: to no President, no party and no agenda,” the NPP stated.

The party also alleged bias against opposition figures under the current leadership of the Judiciary, citing what it called the “extraordinary alacrity” with which vacation warrants have been issued in cases involving NPP members.

The NPP has therefore demanded a retraction of the comments, failing which the Chief Justice should resign and formally join the NDC.