Law School Dean calls for elaboration on application of Contempt by courts
“Like its evolving jurisprudence in constitutional matters, perhaps this is one area where the court needs to engage in some elaboration of the circumstances for its application."
The Dean of the UPSA Law School, Prof Kofi Abotsi has called for an elaboration on the application of the courts’ power of contempt.
He notes that any event of the application of this power by the court especially in constitutional cases has not been bereft of controversies.
“The power to punish for contempt is not open for debate as it's given an express textual allocation under the Constitution."
“The history surrounding the times the courts have used it in any constitutional cases, illustrate the controversies surrounding regimes.”
“Like its evolving jurisprudence in constitutional matters, perhaps this is one area where the court needs to engage in some elaboration of the circumstances for its application so that by its development, further clarity can be brought to the application of the power to punish for contempt”
Speaking at the 2021/2022 Legal year Bench, Bar, and Faculties Conference, Prof Abotsi further indicated that the application and use of the power of contempt is one such area of political complication that usually gets people and political agents to speak against the court.
Further to the above, he emphasized that the above position is very crucial per the decision in Tsatsu Tsikata v. The Attorney General case in which the court held that there will be no punishment unless the offense is defined.
He however praised the court for its fantastic and measured use of the power of contempt despite the fluidity of the same.
And bemoaned the fact that the application of the power of contempt has put the court in something of a fix sometimes because it is chastised either by applying it with a fixed hand or otherwise.
