Resigning is not an option – Gertrude Torkornoo.

The suspended Chief Justice, Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo, has said resigning from office is not an option.

She says if she resigns, it will mean she is running from the allegations made against her.

“Resigning is not an option,” she said at a press conference in Accra on Wednesday, June 25.

She further said that she received veiled threats that if she did not resign voluntarily, she would be made to suffer harm.

She said “The final and fourth reason for this Statement is that I have heard on several occasions, from loved ones, persons who care, persons who may not know me beyond my public duties, and many who think that since it is clear that the current proceedings seem to be carefully staged to result in my removal as Chief Justice, it would be best if I just retired or resigned, rather than subject myself to an ill-motivated process.

I have also received threats and veiled threats to the effect that if I fail to resign or voluntarily retire, I will be made to suffer some harm or the other.

I have also heard several commentaries in the media about how this process was born out of a stated political agenda to remove me and control the Judiciary, and that, it is a political effort that can only result in the charade of a hearing that is played out. I thank all those who have engaged in this conversation out of concern for my safety and well-being. Let me assure everybody that I do not seek to cling to a title or position. However, as a lawyer of 38 years standing, a Judge of 21 years standing, and Chief Justice of Ghana who has served in the rule of law all of my working life, I consider it my onerous duty and obligation to speak up concerning the administration of justice in this country.

The situation I have been confronted with has shown me a model of injustice that I would never have thought possible if I had not been exposed to it. This is why despite great personal discomfort, I have decided to marshal every effort, in law and leadership, to answer to this situation.

Furthermore, resigning or retiring while Article 146 proceedings are being conducted to remove a Judge is not an option any Judge or public official is even allowed to have. There is a decided case on the subject by the Supreme Court. The suit number is J6/02/2019