Justice Senyo Dzamefe, a Court of Appeal judge nominated for appointment to the Supreme Court bench, has supported a proposal to increase the number of justices on the Supreme Court, arguing that the move would help clear a growing backlog of cases.
He made the remark during his vetting by Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Monday [June 16, 2025].
Justice Dzamefe was the first of seven nominees appearing before the vetting committee this week.
Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo currently on suspension pending an investigation into three petitions asking for her removal from office, in February 2024 had proposed in a letter to the President that the number of justices on the bench should be increased to 20 because of the workload, in effect, she was asking for the appointment of additional justices.
According to data cited by Justice Torkornoo, 12 judges handled 344 cases in the 2022/2023 legal year, leaving 1,648 cases pending.
“Our Supreme Court is overburdened with more than 400 cases each year, unlike the United States, where state courts help reduce the load,” Justice Dzamefe told parliament’s appointment committee when he appeared for vetting on Monday morning.
He said increasing the number of judges would speed up decisions on land, chieftaincy, and constitutional matters.
Responding to a question from Mr Mahama Ayariga, Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, Justice Dzamefe also supported a proposal to extend Supreme Court sittings to Tamale in the northern part of Ghana to help lessen the burden on litigants in traveling to Accra.
He said the move would reduce travel costs for litigants in northern Ghana and make justice more accessible in towns such as Bawku and Bolgatanga.
On the issue of transparency, Justice Dzamefe confirmed that he had filed his asset declaration in response to a question from Mr Jerry Ahmed Shaib.
“Judges must comply with the law as public officers,” he said.
