IDDI MUHAYU-DEEN’S FOLDER
There cannot
be an exaggeration of the indispensable role the JUDICIARY plays in our
democratization and constitutional regime as an Arm of Government. Indeed, the
Judiciary remains the pillar upon which our democracy revolves and the stronger
it is, the more secured we are and the vice versa. Our judges are therefore
very important players in this discussion and must be revered as such. It is not for nothing that we call
them the LORDS on earth; because they dispense justice or pass judgment on our
actions and have the sole authority to determine whether we are deserving of
freedom or otherwise. Also, Ghana’s claim of being the oasis of democracy and
beacon of hope on the continent is backed by our unconditional respect for the
Rule of Law and for that matter an efficacious judicial system.
However, this
enviable narrative is gradually changing in view of the increasing
bastardization of the JUDICIARY by some maverick politicians in recent times, who
call the bluff of everybody because they have political power. As a young
democrat, I’m highly saddened by this worrying development which has the
propensity to ERODE public confidence in our JUDGES and thus subject the
administration of justice into disrepute. My apprehension is even more
aggravated by the increasing incidences of injustices, maladministration and
impunity we see in this country nowadays. It is a fact that when people lose
confidence in the judicial system, which is the one and only last resort in our
pursuit for justice, then surely, CHAOS and ANARCHY will become the order of
the day. And this can be akin to a JUNGLE where RULE OF MEN takes precedence
over RULE OF LAW. In such banana republic (jungle), people tend to seek justice
on the STREETS rather than the COURTS.
Mind you,
President Mahama, by freeing the notorious muntie gangs, is essentially telling
us that when a political party is in government, the footsoldiers of that party
can get away with all offenses they commit including those that are of criminal
in nature. So I guess we should all get ready to witness more lawlessness,
injustices and impunity from the supporters of the governing party, because
even if the court convicts them, they will be freed by the President under a so
called “Prerogative of Mercy”. By this, if any Ghanaian has a LEGITIMATE CASE
against any member of the president’s family, a high ranking government/NDC
official, a minister of state, or even a son of a district chief executive, he/she
has to let go of the case because he/she CANNOT get justice anywhere in this
country. Even when “NDC lawyers” lose their case in court, they only have to
petition the President to reverse the court’s decision as we saw in muntie 3. I
doubt this is the kind of Ghana our forebears sacrificed their lives for.
Our President
is suggesting to us that he is more powerful than the courts and can OVERTURN their
decision anytime he desires. If Supreme Court judges themselves cannot get
justice in a matter involving NDC activists, then who am I, the son of an
ordinary “wakye” seller to seek to enforce my constitutional right when same is
trampled upon by these so called super Ghanaians? Obviously, the dictum,
EQUALITY BEFORE THE LAW, only exists in our dreams or in other jurisdiction but
surely NOT in this country. Indeed, Almighty ALLAH is and remains our ultimate
judge and He would never disappoint mankind in the administration of justice
and more.
The BNI,
which is supposed to enforce the law to the latter, has rather regrettably,
been the number one culprit of lawlessness and conduit for the perpetuation of
what I call, government-sponsored injustices and persecutions. For instance, in
the specific case of the muntie 3 brouhaha, we have a married man, whose
testicular organ is functioning properly as evidenced in the children it has
been able to produce, threatens to open his zip and rape a woman in the person
of the Chief Justice; yet, this shameless BNI tells us that this strong man
does not have CAPACITY to execute his threat of rape. Which capacity is the BNI
talking about under the circumstances? How preposterous! Then I guess the BNI
should be telling us who impregnates the wife of this man. In any case, our
constitution clearly states that a threat to commit a criminal offence (which
includes rape and murder) is itself, a criminal offence regardless of CAPACITY so
called.
I doubt
anybody has ever thought that, that innocent looking young man who murdered
Hon. JB Danquah at his private residence, had the capacity to commit such
dastardly act. Is the BNI rewriting our laws? The BNI is also telling us that
Kennedy Agyapong has the capacity to declare war in this country and hence
slapped him with charges of terrorism and genocide but the muntie 3 do not have
the capacity to rape a woman or kill some Supreme Court judges. This is in
spite of the fact our constitution clearly says that it is ONLY the President of
the Republic that can declare war in this country. Surprised? Please don’t be…
because this is exactly what to expect when our PROFESSIONALS decide to
jettison the very ethics of their profession and allow themselves to be used by
politicians for political expediency. I weep for my motherland.
My greatest
disappointment is with His Excellency the President, who has on countless
occasions, spoken against fierce criticisms or what he describes as verbal
attacks at the person of Madam Charlotte Osei, the Chairperson of the EC but
has not, I repeat, has not on anyday, found the need to call his supporters,
who have consistently attacked the JUDICIARY, to order. Not even their threat
to kill and rape our judges could make president Mahama break his loud silence
on this opprobrious agenda of bastardizing the judiciary by his own. Perhaps,
on the lighter side, my friend was right when he says the acronym, JDM stands
for Judges Don’t Matter. He perhaps forgets that these were the same judges
that ruled in his favour in the historic Election Petition which gave him the
presidency. Same can be also said about the likes of Nana Oye Lithur, the Gender
Minister, Hannah Tetteh (Foreign Affairs minister) and co. who would always
defend the EC Chair but see nothing wrong about attacks on the Chief Justice
and other women of substance.
Madam Chief
Justice and the rest of our law lords, I wish to encourage you to keep doing
your best against all these odds for the love of God and country. The Executive
Arm of Government may not be supportive of your cause but I can assure you that
the likes of us and indeed the rest of Ghana are strongly behind you. We shall
stand by you in thick and in thin. We shall fight for you even at the peril of
our lives because the JUDICIARY is and remains our ONLY hope of living in a
JUST society. We may look relatively weaker in the physical realm but surely,
we are NOT weak when it comes to using our hearts and minds to fight for our
conviction.
Assalamu alaikum
This piece was compiled by a concerned Ghanaian in the business of
OCCUPYING HEARTS and MINDS for the love of God and country.
IDDI MUHAYU-DEEN
Youth Activist/Social Commentator
Former NUGS Secretary
(0245335197)
Please, it is shareable……
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