‘Keep off the arena of politics and allow us politicians to play there’ – Tampuli to CJ

Gushegu MP Alhassan Tampuli has urged Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie to stay out of Ghana’s political arena and allow politicians to engage in political contestation. According to him, the Chief Justice, as the head of the Judiciary, must protect the independence and neutrality of the institution rather than wade into political conflicts. “Keep off the arena of conflicts, keep off the arena of politics and allow us politicians to play there,” Mr Tampuli said.

His comments follow remarks by Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie during a visit to the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) on Wednesday, September 2. Read Also: Chief Justice praises MIIF, other SOEs, questions what Ghana was doing in past 8 years The Chief Justice praised the performance of MIIF and other public institutions under the current administration, saying some of the developments he had witnessed had left him wondering what Ghana had been doing over the past eight years. However, Mr Tampuli argued that the Chief Justice’s position requires him to exercise restraint in his public commentary, particularly on matters that could be interpreted as taking sides in Ghana’s political discourse.

Mr Tampuli said that while he respects the office of the Chief Justice and the distinguished personalities who have occupied it, the current occupant must uphold the standards set by his predecessors. “If the Chief Justice, maybe in carrying on his career, feels he wants to join the political space, why not? He can decide to come and wear the jersey so that we can see him as an easy target,” he said.

Mr Tampuli maintained that until then, politicians would continue to exercise restraint in their criticism of the Chief Justice out of respect for the office. Gushegu Member of Parliament Alhassan Tampuli has accused Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie of descending into partisan politics, urging him to resign his judicial position if he intends to pursue active politics.“Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie has descended into the arena of politics. He has worn a political jersey, and we have to say it for what it is,” Mr Tampuli said.The MP’s comments follow remarks made by the Chief Justice during visits to state institutions on September 2, 2026, where he praised the performance of the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) and other public institutions under the current administration.

Justice Baffoe-Bonnie was heard saying, “Sometimes, when we hear about the things that you have done and the things that some organisations are doing now, we wonder. Some of us keep wondering what we really have been doing in the past eight years” . Mr Tampuli questioned the Chief Justice’s apparent comparison of state institutions’ performance under the current NDC government with that of the previous NPP administration.“Ghana became Ghana only eight years ago?

And so our Chief Justice only remembers what happened before eight years ago. Doesn’t remember what happened 20 years ago, 24 years ago, or 30 years ago?” he asked.The MP argued that the comments were particularly concerning because political disputes can ultimately end up before the Judiciary .“When politicians have a dispute, most likely it will end up before the Judiciary. Now, this is a Chief Justice who has already taken a position,” he said.The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has formally demanded that the Chief Justice retract what it describes as partisan political comments or resign from office and formally join the National Democratic Congress (NDC) .In a statement issued on Thursday, September 3, 2026, and signed by NPP General Secretary Justin Kodua Frimpong, the party said it watched the video with “profound shock and disgust” .“This is not the language of a Chief Justice.