Court Throws Out Application Against COP Yohunos Appointment As Deputy IGP

The High Court in Accra has thrown out an application against Commisshy;sioner of Police (COP) Christian Tetteh Yohuno’s appointment as the deputy Inspector General of Police (IGP).

This is after a private citizen had gone to court over the contention that under the laws of Ghana, there was no appointment as deputy IGP in charge of operations.

Emmanuel Felix Mantey, a private citizen, and a lecturer, who commenced the action, held that the President and the Police Counshy;cil were perpetuating illegality in that appointment.

Mantey in an ex-parte applicashy;tion sued the Attorney-General, the Police Council and COP Christina Tetteh Yohuno.

However, lawyers for the Police Council and COP Yohuno raised a preliminary objection, saying the applicant’s action was instituted in the wrong forum and in contravenshy;tion of Article 2 (1) and 130 (1) of the 1992 Constitution.

Lawyers for the two responshy;dents held that the jurisdiction of the High Court was wrongly invoked by the applicant.

The court, presided by Justice Richard Apietu, was, therefore, called to resolve issue on whether the jurisdiction of the court had been properly invoked before it considered the application.

The court, following prelimshy;inary legal objection, ruled that President acted in accordance with his administrative functions and not that of a judicial one.

“The President was performing his administrative function and not exercising adjudicatory powers when he appointed COP Yohuno (the third respondent) as deputy IGP, therefor, Article 141 of the 1992 Constitution and Section 16 of Act 459 are not the appropriate statutory provisions to be invoked against him,” according to the court.
 
The judge noted that the proper provisions the applicant should have come under to properly inshy;voke the jurisdiction of the court in this matter was Article 23.

The court held that the applishy;cant lacked the authority to intershy;vene in the said appointment and that he failed to properly invoke the supervisory jurisdiction of the High Court, hence dismissed same.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in July 2024, based on the advice of the Police Council, appointed COP Yohuno as the deputy IGP in charge of Operashy;tions.GNA