Justice Francis Korbieh: How a boy from the village became a Court of Appeal judge and not a priest

Long before he donned the judicial robes of the Court of Appeal or occupied a seat in Parliament, retired Justice Francis Gyafiiry Korbieh was simply a young boy in the Upper West Region, trekking 10 miles on foot just to acquire a basic primary education. That gruelling weekly pilgrimage through the rugged terrain of Jirapa laid the groundwork for a legendary 50-year career in Ghana’s legal profession, proving that no distance is too far for a mind determined to learn. Speaking on Joy FM’s Personality Profile, the veteran jurist recounted how the utter lack of educational infrastructure in his native village forced him into an arduous routine from an early age.

“Well, let me start by saying that I come from a village that is 10 miles due east of Jirapa,” Justice Korbieh recalled. So I had to walk those 10 miles, let me say 10 kilometres.” A grueling weekly trek for knowledge With no primary school in his immediate community, the young Korbieh had to rely on a weekly boarding arrangement at his school in Jirapa. However, the trek to and from campus remained a punishing ritual that tested his resolve throughout his six years of primary education.

“I used to walk to the school, attend school for one week, walk back to my village for two days and then walk back to school for another week,” he revealed. That relentless sacrifice paid off in Primary Six when his academic promise earned him a spot among the pioneer students at the newly established St. Francis Xavier Minor Seminary—a rare feat for a child from the region to transition directly into secondary school at the time.

“It was a novelty at the time because in our part of the country, nobody ever went to secondary school from Primary Six,” he noted. From humble footsteps to the bench Though the seminary aimed to train young men for the Catholic priesthood, Korbieh ultimately chose a different calling. “I didn’t want to become a priest,” he said with a laugh.

So that’s why I didn’t become a priest. I also serve the church very well.” That service blossomed into a distinguished career. Born on 20 December 1950 at Jirapa/Kuncheni, Justice Korbieh pursued further studies at St.

Peter’s Secondary School, the University of Ghana, and the Ghana School of Law. He was called to the Ghana Bar on 30 September 1976, ma… So that’s why I didn’t become a priest.” That was how retired Court of Appeal judge Justice Francis Gyafiiry Korbieh explained, with laughter, why he did not follow the path to priesthood despite attending a seminary established to train Catholic priests and young men for Christian life.