Petitions seeking the removal of the Electoral Commission (EC) Chairperson, her two deputies, and the Special Prosecutor (SP) have formally been submitted to President John Dramani Mahama and forwarded to the Chief Justice for action. This was confirmed on Monday by the Minister of State in charge of Government Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu.
According to a report by the Daily Graphic, a total of ten petitions have been filed. Seven target the EC Chair, Mrs Jean Mensa, and her deputies—Dr Bossman Eric Asare, in charge of Corporate Services, and Mr Samuel Tettey, responsible for Operations. Three additional petitions call for the removal of the Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng.
Mr Kwakye Ofosu explained that the President had fulfilled his constitutional mandate by transmitting the petitions to the Chief Justice.
“Every process that needed to be done has been undertaken. The process for doing so is quite clear. At this stage, the process has left the hands of the President beyond conveying the petitions to the Chief Justice. There’s little else that the President does in this particular instance,” he told JoyFM.
“Everything now rests with the Chief Justice, who I believe will act in accordance with Ghanaian law,” he added.
Constitutional Procedure for Removal
Under Article 70 of the 1992 Constitution, the President appoints the EC Chairperson and Deputy Chairpersons on the advice of the Council of State. The removal process, however, mirrors that of Justices of the Superior Courts and is governed by Article 146.
Section 15 of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017, similarly outlines grounds for removing the SP, including misconduct, incompetence, breach of oath, or conduct deemed prejudicial to the state.
By law, the Chief Justice must first determine whether the petitions establish a prima facie case. If they do
