Speedy justice delivery comes from collective effort
It’s been almost 23 years now since the country adopted democratic institutions to seal a welcome into the comity of nations that uphold the fundamental rights of their citizenry.
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The period has also seen one of the highest levels of the preservation of the rule of law and the protection of human rights.
This has earned the country global commendation for respecting the rights of the citizenry to lawful assembly, procession and demonstration, the right to a fair trial, equal access to state-owned media and freedom of speech and expression.
Indeed, one of the fine threads of democracy is that people can trust the 'system' to protect them.
The administration of justice is a central element of that system, hinged on an independent judicial system that guarantees fairness and trust.
But the system is gradually attracting its share of accusations of bias. Indeed, the display of some unethical tendencies by key players in the justice delivery system is worrying and can derail the successes chalked up by the Judiciary.
It is in this respect that we welcome the caution by the Chief Justice, Mrs Justice Georgina Theodora Wood, that a call to the Bar is not a licence to arrogance and disrespect.
We are even more gratified that the Chief Justice, who is credited with many reforms in the Judiciary, is among those who embrace the notion that integrity is the key to success in any human enterprise. But in the contemporary world, integrity is difficult to uphold for many when the benefits of dishonesty are often so immediate, immense and rewarding.
The dividends of integrity are slow in coming and sometimes difficult to see, yet that price is worth every sweat, sacrifice and deprivation of personal comfort and advantage.
It is the view of the Daily Graphic that some of these ethical breaches and the lack of integrity on the part of some members of the Bar and the Bench have caused undue delay in the courts, leading to lost time and inconvenience.
The failure of defence counsel to represent their clients in court is a major cause of the delays in the justice delivery system.
In Ghana, these delays are occurring not just in complex criminal trials but even in more straightforward cases and civil actions.
To reduce the number of prolonged cases in our courts, the Daily Graphic suggests to the Chief Justice to set up a committee within the Judiciary to monitor cases filed in the various courtrooms.
The Attorney-General’s Department, for its part, needs more qualified personnel who can effectively lead witnesses during the prosecution of cases.
Significantly, though, defence counsel, as legal practitioners, need not be reminded that once contracted, they are obliged to provide the services for which they have been hired.