Johnson Asiedu Nketia, National Chairman of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), has sharply rejected suspended Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Torkornoo’s claims that Adu Lodge was deliberately chosen to intimidate or torture her during her removal hearing.

Speaking in an interview with JoyNews PM Express monitored by Kumasimail, Asiedu Nketia challenged the Chief Justice’s allegation, asking pointedly, “Is she claiming that she was tortured in that Adu Lodge?”

He then provided a historical perspective, reminding Ghanaians that Adu Lodge, located at the castles, was originally linked to the dark days of the slave trade, where dungeons were used for torture.

“After independence, we used Christianborg Castle until recently,” he said, underlining that the building’s history alone does not prove any current wrongdoing.

He argued that the structure itself could be intimidating but said Torkornoo’s claim was weak and merely an attempt to gain public sympathy.

He emphasized “So that argument is neither here nor there. The structure itself can torture you. I don’t think she’s making a strong point, in my view. She’s just playing to the gallery.

“She’s just trying to court public sympathy, which she doesn’t deserve. She doesn’t deserve it because this is a structure you yourself have used in the past. You were shouting in your courtroom that the law is the law.”

Asiedu Nketia further challenged the suspended Chief Justice’s suggestion of political manipulation within the judiciary.

He pointed out that no changes have been made to the judiciary’s laws, judges, or procedures since her tenure.

“Have we changed the laws? We haven’t. Have we changed any of the judges she was operating with? We haven’t. Have we passed any legislation that has changed the procedures and processes in the judiciary she was heading? We haven’t changed anything. So if that judiciary had been delivering or administering justice to ordinary citizens, why on earth should she be thinking that she’s a special human being?” Asiedu Nketia asked rhetorically.

The NDC chairman also questioned the narrative of political interference within the judiciary, pointing out that the same judges and legal frameworks remain in place.

“Is it possible for a political agenda to be executed by the judiciary which she presided over? If that is the case, nothing has changed. But I am asking you, what have we changed in the judiciary she was heading? We haven’t changed anything. All the judges are the same judges who existed when she was in charge, and she was proclaiming that the law is the law and the processes are there. The 7–0, 9–0, unanimous 7 decisions are the same, so the only difference is that she is now at the receiving end of the work of the same unanimous 7. So, what has changed?” he asked.

Asiedu Nketia suggested that if the suspended Chief Justice now doubts the judiciary’s ability to deliver justice, she should support efforts to reform it to eliminate political interference in the future.

“If she is now realizing that justice cannot be delivered by the judiciary she was heading, then she should help us. She should agree with us on the need to reset the judiciary so that, in the future, we rid it of all political manipulations,” he noted.

This exchange comes amid heated controversy over the choice of Adu Lodge as the venue for Torkornoo’s removal hearing.

The suspended Chief Justice had argued that Adu Lodge was an inappropriate setting, given its historical association with the 1981 murder of three High Court judges and her uncle. She also criticized the secrecy surrounding her hearing.

Interestingly, Adu Lodge was recently renovated and commissioned by former President Nana Addo Dankwah Akufo-Addo, who hailed it as a symbol of Ghana’s diplomatic legacy and a gateway to new possibilities.

Named after the distinguished diplomat Amishadai Larson Adu, the lodge now serves as a modern venue for hosting diplomats and international events.

By: Kwadwo Owusu