President John Dramani Mahama has received ten separate petitions demanding the removal of top officials of the Electoral Commission (EC) and the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), all of whom were appointed under Article 70 of the Constitution.
Multiple sources say the petitions have already been transmitted to the Chief Justice, Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, for preliminary action.
Seven of the petitions target the EC Chairperson, Jean Mensa, and her two deputies Dr Bossman Eric Asare, who oversees Corporate Services, and Samuel Tettey, who heads Operations.
The remaining three petitions call for the removal of Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng.
What the Constitution says
Under Article 70(2), the President appoints the EC Chairperson, deputies and other members based on advice from the Council of State. Their terms mirror those of Superior Court judges, meaning their removal processes follow the same strict standards.
The EC Chairperson enjoys the same conditions of service as a Justice of the Court of Appeal, while the two deputies hold terms similar to Justices of the High Court.
How removal of EC leadership works
Article 146 sets a high bar for removing a Justice of the Superior Courts or the Chairperson of a Regional Tribunal — grounds must be limited to stated misbehaviour, incompetence, or an inability to perform due to physical or mental infirmity.
Once a petition is received, the President must forward it to the Chief Justice, who determines whether there is a prima facie case. If such a case is established, a five-member committee is set up, made up of three Superior Court judges or Regional Tribunal chairpersons, and two non-lawyers who are neither members of Parliament nor the Council of State.
The committee conducts the inquiry in camera and submits its recommendations to the Chief Justice, who then relays them to the President. According to the Constitution, the President is bound to act strictly in line with the committee’s recommendations.
OSP removal process mirrors EC procedures, but with timelines
Section 15 of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959) outlines a similar removal process for the SP, but with clearly defined deadlines.
The SP may be removed for stated misbehaviour, incompetence, incapacity, wilful breach of the Official Oath or Oath of Secrecy, or conduct that brings the OSP into disrepute or threatens national security or the economy.
A petition must first be sent to the President, who has seven days to refer it to the Chief Justice. The CJ then has 30 days to decide whether there is a prima facie case. If there is, a committee identical in structure to that used for EC removals must be established within 14 days.
The committee has 90 days to complete its work and submit its recommendation to the President through the Chief Justice. Once submitted, the President is legally required to act exactly as the committee recommends.
