ghananlpcommunity/ghana-gov-speeches-sentences huggingface dataset:
I urge you to ensure that this Court which serves as a first point of contact presents a new and friendlier face of justice in the Ayawaso Central Municipality.
Irene Naa Torshie Addo Lartey, whose drive and enthusiasm have made it possible for resources to be utilized for this facility.
Our gratitude also goes to the Ayawaso Central Municipal Assembly for making land available for the Court and to all our other distinguished invited guests for taking time out of their busy schedule to be here with us today.
It is my pleasure at this juncture to declare the District Court, Kotobabi duly inaugurated.
May this Court be a blessing to all, especially its users and may they find and experience true justice in this Court.
ADDRESS BY THE HONOURABLE LADY CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE REPUBLIC OF GHANA, JUSTICE GERTRUDE SACKEY TORKORNOO, ON THE OCCASION OF THE INAUGURATION OF THE COURT COMPLEX, ATEBUBU, ON THURSDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2023 My Lords, Judges and Magistrates, Vice President, Bono East Regional House of Chief – Nana Owusu Sakyi III Regional Minister for Bono East – Hon.
Kwasi Adu Gyan Hon.
Member of Parliament for Atebubu-Amantin, Hon.
Sanja Nanja Paramount Chief of Atebubu Traditional Area, Ohempon Yeboah Asiamah Municipal Chief Executive, Atebubu-Amantin Municipal Assembly– Hon.
Edward Owusu Distinguished Invited Guests, The Media, Ladies and Gentlemen, Good morning, It gives me great pleasure to be here with you, in this beautiful, serene town of Atebubu, the capital of Atebubu-Amantin Municipal Assembly in the Bono East Region, to inaugurate this modern twin court facility.
Now it will be a triplet inauguration.
I thank you all distinguished invited guests for taking time out of your busy schedules to join us for this important occasion.
My learning informs me that the Municipality which is predominantly agrarian, shares a border with Pru East and Pru West in the North, Sene West on the West and Nkoranza North and the three districts of Ejura – Sekyeredumase, Sekyere East and Sekyere West to the East and can boast of some notable towns such as Amantin, Bresuano, Mempeasem, Jato Zongo, Dobidi Nkwanta, New Konkrompe, Sampa, Afrefreso, and Asanteboa.
Information available is also that, this Municipality which falls in the middle and forest belt, with an estimated population of over 141,000 inhabitants and a total land area of approximately 1,996 sq km² thrives on the water from the River Pru for its sustenance.
I am also informed that the salubrious climate of Atebubu is responsible for the Municipality’s rich soil and lush vegetation cover which support the cultivation of cashew, yam, mangoes, maize, tomatoes, pepper, garden eggs and rice on both subsistence and commercial basis for its local economy and the national economy as well.
So we are in the center of great potential, and great resources.
Ladies and gentlemen, the journey to this day which we are proud and happy about, began in the early part of 2018 when the former Chief Justice, Justice Sophia A.B.
Akuffo, on her visit to the old District Court just close by, during her nationwide tour of courts in Ghana, evaluated that the court was not quite ‘fit for the purpose’ of justice delivery.
The old court building failed the test that a court house should exude elegance and nobility, be comfortable, and provide a working environment conducive to productivity.
It must also reflect the authority and dignity of not only the Judiciary, but the State.
The old facility did not have adequate offices and washrooms for Court Staff and clients.
The court room itself was a big, open hall which operated in the full glare of passersby, compromising the security of the Magistrate and Court Staff, including court users.
Thankfully, two years later, the Atebubu-Amantin Municipal Assembly listened to the Judiciary and on 2 nd July, 2020, the sod was cut for work to begin not only on a new District Court but also a Circuit Court.
In doing so, the Assembly implemented the double Courtroom prototype design developed by the Judicial Service.
And here, I wish to place to place on record that The Atebubu Amantin Municipal Assembly is the second Assembly in the Bono East Region after the Kintampo Municipal Assembly, to implement this double Courtroom prototype design which was circulated to the MMDAs from the Judicial Service.
Courts must follow a design that respond to the requirement for a court to have not only a Judge, but a cashier, court clerk, bailiff, court recorder, process clerk, interpreter and a registrar.
The necessity for a Circuit Court here in Atebubu had become acute after its rapid population increase led to its elevation as the Municipal Capital.
To compound matters, the only Circuit Court in this catchment area for inhabitants was the Circuit Court, Techiman which is a long journey of 142.5 kilometres, clearly undermining the very concept of access to justice for those who needed the service of the court.
Today, the brand new Circuit Court we are inaugurating will serve not only the people of Atebubu but also the neighbouring Districts of Yeji and Kwame Danso.
The new, modern twin court facility constructed with Internally Generated Funds of the Atebubu-Amantin Municipal Assembly, comes complete with en-suite chambers for both the Circuit Court Judge and Magistrate, Registrar’s Office, Recorder’s Office, Cashier’s Office, Docket Room, Bailiffs’ Office and Washrooms for Staff and Court Users.
I would urge the Municipal Assembly to quickly construct the cells for the two courts so that criminal justice delivery can also commence in earnest after today’s inauguration.
Let me take the opportunity to share certain thought about law.
Law gives three promises - The first promise law brings to society is the quality of order, because law serves to provide direction for everybody and every action.
After order, the next chief promise of law is justice and fairness.
When the rule of law is established in any society, it delivers another promise, apart from order and justice as already discussed.
The rule and protection of law therefore serve as the most positive building rungs for the steady development of any society.
I also need to congratulate the Honourable MCE Edward Owusu for his dynamism, leadership and focus in getting this court inaugurated before the new year.
For those who will be working in these court buildings, the Judge, Magistrate and Court Staff, I urge you, in your words and in your conduct, to live up to the highest ideals of the law.
We must ensure that we are not only fair and just, but are seen by all to be so, so they will feel confident in seeking redress from these buildings and what they represent.
Let me end by once again thanking the Atebubu-Amantin Municipal Assembly for delivering this project and to all of you for being a part of today’s ceremony.
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SPEECH BY THE HONOURABLE LADY CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE REPUBLIC OF GHANA, JUSTICE GERTRUDE SACKEY TORKORNOO AS A SPECIAL GUEST OF HONOUR ON THE NATIONAL LOTTERY AUTHORITY’S FESTIVAL OF NINE LESSONS AND CAROLS NIGHT HELD AT NLA’S HEAD OFFICE, ACCRA ON 29 TH DECEMBER, 2023 AT 4:30PM Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs – Hon.
Shirley Bortchwey The Board Chairman, His Eminence Torgbui Francis Nyonyo The Board of Directors of NLA The Director General of NLA, Mr.
Samuel Awuku The Deputy Director General of NLA, Ms.
Anna Horma Miezah Management and Staff of NLA Distinguished Guests Ladies and Gentlemen Thank you for having me as your Special Guest of Honour.
I am glad I could join you.
The true spirit of Christmas is exuded when we come together with thanksgiving and gratitude, as in this Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols?
I commend the National Lottery Authority (NLA) for ending the year on this high note.
My presence here tonight comes as an affirmation of and also lends credence to the longstanding relationship between the Judiciary and National Lottery Authority.
It reveals the steadfast commitment of the Judiciary to support and uphold the integrity of the games of this institution.
This is evident in the Judiciary’s representation on the Authority’s Draw Committee, ensuring that every draw is conducted with the highest sense of transparency, accuracy and integrity.
This is what validates the actual public stakes.
While all of this is being done, the brazen disregard for the laws by illegal lottery operators whose activities result in the loss of huge sums of money at the expense of the Authority and the government is not lost on the courts.
The Director General, Mr.
Samuel Awuku, has brought this menace to my attention, and we are working on certain specific to address this menace.
Among these measures is the application of stringent punitive terms initiatives to serve as a deterrent for perpetrators of illegal lottery operations.
The Judicial Training Institute has also designed training to increase case management skills for speedy attention to cases pertaining to lottery-related offences.
While I commend you for attaining Level 2 Certification in Responsible Gaming this year, I urge you to exercise your role more diligently as a regulator to safeguard our children’s future and ensure strict compliance with the laws governing the eligibility of players.
I would like to share the poem on the loss of a horse shoe nail which led to the loss of a kingdom.
This poem shows that no matter how small or seemingly insignificant one’s contribution to a larger objective is, lack of diligence and recklessness about losses can tip over the safety of the whole group.
So I encourage illegal lottery operators to stop thinking only about themselves, and to remember the nation, and its needs.
Thank you again for having me at tonight’s event.
I wish you a Merry Christmas and a prosperous new year ahead.
SPEECH DELIVERED BY THE HONOURABLE LADY CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE REPUBLIC OF GHANA, JUSTICE GERTRUDE SACKEY TORKORNOO, AT THE SWEARING IN OF 23 MAGISTRATES Date: Monday, 4 th March, 2024 Venue: Auditorium, Law Court Complex, Accra My Lords, Justices of the Supreme Court My Lords Justices of the Superior Courts of Judicature The Judicial Secretary Honourable Deputy Attorney General and Minister for Justice Your Honors and Worships The President of the Greater Accra Regional Bar representing National President of the Ghana Bar Association Your Worships Distinguished Invited Guests Ladies and Gentlemen Good morning It is my joy to welcome you today for this very important occasion.
Thank you for joining us for this significant milestone in the lives of our new magistrates.
The addition to our ranks of a fresh batch of Magistrates will be a boost to the cause of justice delivery and I would like to congratulate all the new Magistrates on their elevation and welcome them to the bench from where we serve our nation.
The path to this day has by no means been easy and I would like to think that the grit and determination you have shown are an indicator of the qualities that you will bring to your duties as Magistrates.
I would also like to thank the various institutions of training and certification that help us, year in year out, to produce new and qualified personnel to play their role in the critical task of justice delivery.
Your work is of the greatest importance, especially in ensuring that the Judiciary has the quality that is needed on the Bench and at various levels in the justice delivery system.
Ladies and gentlemen, while it is a self-evident fact, it bears repeating that society cannot survive without the fair and rigorous application of a standard and predictable system of laws and rules.
I reiterate this fact to remind all of us of the necessity and nobility of the calling of the Judge.
The peace and stability that the nation enjoys and take pride in, is sustained in large part, by the confidence citizens have in the durability of the legal regime.
A robust Judiciary needs, in equal measure, quality laws and quality judges and magistrates to discharge its constitutional mandate.
The job of the Judge is to lead the various actors in the courtroom in the united pursuit of truth and justice, guided by the principles of equity and fairness.
I urge you, new Magistrates, to be mindful of the oaths you have taken and stay faithful to the solemn promises you have made to your nation, your fellow citizens and your God.
Integrity, Propriety, Independence, Competence.
The stuck truth is that the position of a Magistrate is above all else, a moral calling.
We are called on to navigate and discern from the strongly held and passionately argued positions before us, that which is true, right and just using rules and law in all honesty.
In doing this, judges are expected to ignore and erase personal feelings and biases.
It is not of a Judge job to please, but if done right, judicial decisions must bring satisfaction.
This requires extreme dedication, integrity and unyielding adherence to principle.
Having come this far, it is my expectation that you are aware of this weight that you must bear and it is my fervent hope that you are prepared and will not, for any reason, yield under this weight.
As Chief Justice, I have committed myself and my tenure to the improvement of the overall Conditions of justice delivery by our institution to the public, the citizens of this country, for whose sake the administration of justice has been entrusted to the Judiciary by the 1992 Constitution.
The wheels of justice may seem to grind slowly but they must be helped along with the right activation of systems put in place by the Rules of Court, practices of the court, and administrative instructions.
This commitment must manifest itself in the efforts of all judges to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and integrity of the processes we engage in.
It also means that as administration, we must commit ourselves to the training and retraining of Judges, staff, and everyone involved in justice delivery.
I am encouraged by the fact that some of you here today were previously Career Magistrates who have taken advantage to study for the Bar and are today fully qualified to preside over District Courts.
As you may be aware, a few years ago, previous rules meant that a Career Magistrate could not move further up the ladder; but that has changed, and now many more can reach further up the career path.
This, I am convinced should bring a boost to the quality of the Service and a welcome opening for many of our Career Magistrates.
I urge you to continue on the path of learning, because this career is an academic and intellectual one.
Ensure that you remain abreast of the ever evolving trends of the legal and judicial procedures and practice, and their operation with and through technology.
Through these and other efforts, you can contribute your required quota to a relevant Judicial Service that answers the call that the nation makes on us to preserve its peace, strengthen its security and enhance its prosperity.
Thank you all for coming and may God bless us all and our efforts.
STATEMENT OF HER LADYSHIP JUSTICE G. SACKEY TORKORNOO On the occasion of the Launch of ‘LEADing JUSTICE’ A Strategic Framework For Increasing LEGALITY, ETHICS, ASSETS, DIGITALIZATION & DUE PROCESS IN JUSTICE DELIVERY 8 th April 2023 Your Excellency, Alhaji Dr.
Mahamadu Bawumia, Vice President of the Republic of Ghana, I stand here very excited, elated and humbled by your response to the invitation to join me in the launch the strategic framework of the vision that I intend to implement during my tenure as Chief Justice of the Republic, a journey that started on June 12 th 2023.
Thank you very very much for taking time off your busy schedules to participate in today’s program.
On 12 th June 2023, I articulated my views from the window of one who had worked actively in court rooms as a legal practitioner from 1987 and as a judge since 2004.
Over this period, I have become acutely aware of the dread that citizens have of coming to court because of potential wastes of time and expenses incurred in their bid to access justice.
Since 2004, when I joined the Judiciary, I have actively worked in all the different facets of the reform initiatives commenced by the four Chief Justices I was privileged to work under, before the mantle of the responsibility was placed on my shoulder to continue from where they left their treasured contributions to the nation’s justice delivery systems.
I speak of Chief Justice George Kingsley Acquah of blessed memory, Chief Justice Georgina Theodora Wood, Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo, and Chief Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah.
Through the experience of working in the Judicial Training Institute, as supervising judge for commercial courts, in administration of various programs and committees of the Judiciary, and the E-Justice journey of the Judiciary, it became clear to me, and at this point, I quote from my speech delivered on 12 th June 2023 ‘ that to speed up the efficiency and effectiveness of our systems, so much more is needed for and from the Judiciary than determination and avowed purpose.
The expansion of electronically accessed library services will require support.’
In the book ‘ Way of the Peaceful Warrior: A Book that changes lives ’ by Dan Millman, the character Socrates is quoted as saying, ‘the secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new’ I am therefore glad to report that after I left Jubilee House with my instrument of investiture, I immediately set to work to develop a strategic framework to guide decision making, inform operational planning and delivery, and help measure progress in the achievement of the desired change to efficient and effective justice delivery.
My leadership directions in this planning has focused on tackling the seemingly systemic difficulties that appear determined to dim the efforts of previous Chief Justices to activate the efficient and effective delivery of justice with various reform initiatives.
Interestingly, barely weeks after commencing work as Chief Justice, and during the period of developing this vision statement, I received a visit from a cherished Ghanaian leader, Apostle Eric Nyamekye, the Chairman of the Church of Pentecost.
He took me aside, as Moses’ father-in -law Jethro must have done, when he saw Moses wearing himself out as a Judge, without the support of dependable partners in his leadership tasks.
The esteemed Apostle pointed out to me that in order to obtain extensive support beyond the cluster of help that the Judiciary was used to working with, and the needed cooperation of the people of Ghana that I must serve, I should consider articulating the distinct goals within the Vision shared on June 12 th 2023, and share same with the nation, with the objective of mobilizing support from as wide a national and international base as can be obtained.
Sir thank you very much.
The Judiciary is not known for speaking beyond the corridors of the courts, and so it will not surprise me if many find this morning’s event odd.
However, I have taken this step of doing so, because as Albert Einstein is quoted as saying, ‘ we cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them. ’
Clearly, since justice emanates from the people of Ghana and is only administered by the Judiciary by the direction of article 125 (1) of the 1992 Constitution, it is meet and right to engage the people for whom the justice sector works, to walk with us and help us in solving the difficulties faced in the smooth administration of justice.
Nana Chair, Your Excellency, Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, this Strategic Framework has been given the title ‘LEADing Justice’ .
LEAD is an acronym for Law, Ethics, Assets, Due Process and Digitalization .
Why is it necessary to cast a strategic vision to increase the knowledge of law when all Judges are trained lawyers, and indeed, no one can join the judiciary unless they have first obtained the full qualifying proficiency in law, and a required level of experience?
The reality is that the Judiciary works within the Public Service institution called the Judicial Service of Ghana.
Staff of the Judicial Service of Ghana, currently numbering more than seven thousand officers, are all experts in their own field, and join the service on the basis of their recognized expertize.
However, they are not lawyers.
Indeed, only a very insignificant number are lawyers.
And yet the ultimate reason for anyone coming to court is for an order, a ruling or a judgment.
Any court order, ruling or a judgment must strictly comply with law and legality, in its content, and also in the process by which it was arrived at.
For this reason, no matter how beautifully filled with law an order, ruling and judgment is, if it was reached through a process that did not satisfy the tenets of legality, it stands the danger of being overturned, reversed, varied, or sometimes quashed altogether.
That process of arriving at an order, ruling or judgment is managed not only by the Judge, but a myriad number of people who form part of the relay in justice delivery.
Thus in their daily work, Judges are expected to deliver justice with supporting staff, who have almost zero knowledge of the basic ingredients of justice – law and legality.
The import of the language of the law, the effect of time on legality, the effect of skipping any process and procedure is largely not known to the vast majority of the thousands of staff who work with Judges.
As they conduct their administrative duties, they do so with knowledge from their own skill sets and proficiencies, and not the nuanced appreciation of the effect of law on actions.
Avoidable mistakes, errors, and distortions of the requirements for due process therefore abound in the work of the courts and these affect court users with much loss, expense, delay and frustration.
The framework of vision presented today is therefore calling for a bold and multiplied outlay of paralegal learning to be made available to all the thousands of Judicial Service Staff, and the countless professionals who work with the Judiciary to deliver justice.
These professionals include police investigators, prosecutors, mediators who supplement the court’s work with alternate dispute resolution services, external court service providers such as process servers, valuers, surveyors, financial experts, all types of experts, auctioneers, etc etc.
As important as paralegal learning is to the professionals who must help judges to deliver orders, rulings and judgments that pass the unimpeachable test of legality, the citizen must also be assisted to understand the systems used in court, so that their journey in seeking justice will be less affected with abuse, missteps, and failures that deprive their rights and entitlements.
On June 12 th 2023, I said that ‘t he raising of facilities to create world class centers of judicial (and legal) learning, the production of manuals, practice directions, and resources to assist litigants in our courts, will not only increase the efficiency of support services but also reduce untoward abuse of administrative and judicial discretion, while raising financial resources for the Judiciary.
Nana Chair, I am more than excited to announce that as part of the immediate (first two hundred days) goals set out in this vision statement, I have been greatly assisted and helped to produce various paralegal learning materials for accounting professionals, process servers, interpreters, court clerks, recorders and secretaries, and registrars working with the courts.
The Judicial Training Institute, working with our technology and innovation teams, have also trained our first cohort of faculty members in how to deliver on line training with effective adult learning models, because the cost of training thousands of people physically, bringing them from around the country will be simply prohibitive.
So much of training will now be delivered on line, with structured pre- delivered materials, and post training exercises, to ensure that actual learning is done, before certification is given.
ETHICS Nana Chair, Your Excellency, as stated earlier, the letter ‘E’ in this strategic framework stands for the word ‘Ethics’.
I deeply crave, along with all our well-wishers I am sure, to change the tags of ‘corruption’ ‘ineptitude’, and ‘inefficiency’ around the Judiciary and Judicial Service of Ghana.