The Appointments Committee of Parliament has promised a vigorous screening of Chief Justice nominee Sophia Akuffo who is scheduled to appear before the committee today, Friday 16, 2017.
The Chairman of the Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs and the Judicial committees of the House Mr Joseph Osei-Wusu said Madam Akuffo will be interrogated on a wide range of issues including her vision for the position.
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He said each member of the committee would be given a maximum of 20 minutes to pose questions to the Chief Justice nominee.
Justice Sophia Akuffo was appointed by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as the second female Chief Justice in replacement of Justice Georgina Theodora Wood who went on retirement after 47 years of public service.
Per the constitution, a nominee to the position of Chief Justice must be vetted by the Appointments Committee followed by approval by two-thirds of the majority in parliament.
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Profile of Sophia Akuffo
Ms Justice Akuffo has been at the Supreme Court for the past two decades. She has a master’s degree in Law (LL.M) from the Havard University in the United States of America (USA).
She has been a member of the Governing Committee of the Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute and Chairperson of the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Task Force.
In January 2006, she was elected one of the first judges of the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights and was re-elected until 2014 when she served as the Vice-President. She is the immediate past President of the court.
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She is on the Disciplinary Committee of the General Legal Council and has held membership of many organisations.
Her publications include: The Application of Information & Communications Technology in the Judicial Process - The Ghanaian Experience, presented to the African Judicial Network Ghana (2002).