The General Secretary of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia, has expressed concern about the ill-treatment given to lawyers who are perceived to be members of the NDC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to him, certain state institutions deliberately black-list \u2018NDC lawyers\u2019, while some judges also prejudge cases involving NDC attorneys.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The NDC\u2019s chief scribe described the situation as worrying, when he addressed a gathering of NDC lawyers at the party\u2019s Lawyers\u2019 Conference on Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Speaking at the event, he noted that this does not augur well for the country\u2019s democracy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOnce you identify with NDC, you\u2019re denied any opportunity to participate in state business. No state organisation will feel comfortable assigning you legal business to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We are aware of the intimidation you suffer in your profession [with] the leaders of your profession and the Judiciary. I\u2019m told that if you appear before certain judges, they prejudge your case because you\u2019re not with a certain group\u201d, Asiedu Nketia lamented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meanwhile, former President, John Dramani Mahama also says it will take a new Chief Justice to repair the \u2018broken image\u2019 of the Judiciary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to him, the current leadership of the Judiciary lacks what it takes to redeem its sunken image, hence the need for a new Chief Justice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Addressing the same gathering of NDC lawyers, Mr Mahama explained that, a perceived independent Judiciary is a vital element in safeguarding the country\u2019s democracy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He, however, noted that the current Judiciary has become an item of ridicule and mistrust, and therefore the need for a new Chief Justice to restore public confidence in the courts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere is therefore the urgent need for the Ghanaian Judiciary to work to win the trust and confidence of the citizenry, and erase the widely held perception of hostility and political bias in legal proceedings at the highest courts of the land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unfortunately, we have no hope that the current leadership of our Judiciary can lead such a process of change. We can only hope, that a new Chief Justice will lead the process to repair the broken image that our Judiciary has acquired over the last few years\u201d, Mahama said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n