Majority Chief Whip and South Dayi Member of Parliament, Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, has accused the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) of increasingly becoming a platform for concerns raised by members and sympathisers of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP).
Mr Dafeamekpor alleged that recent interventions by the Ghana Bar Association on matters concerning the Judiciary and Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie have closely reflected positions advanced by the NPP, raising questions about the professional body’s political neutrality.
“I have always made the point that the GBA has become a ventilating association for the opposition party, which is the New Patriotic Party,” Mr Dafeamekpor said.
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He made the allegation during an interview on Eyewitness News on Monday, September 14, 2026, while commenting on the growing public debate over the relationship between the Judiciary, the Executive and the legal profession.
The South Dayi MP cited the Ghana Bar Association’s recent concerns about legal vacation and its criticism of Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie as examples of what he described as a recurring pattern.
According to Mr Dafeamekpor, the GBA sometimes takes up concerns first raised by lawyers he described as NPP members or sympathisers without adequately verifying the claims before issuing public statements.
He specifically challenged the association’s criticism of the Chief Justice over the scheduling of cases during the legal vacation.
Mr Dafeamekpor argued that the GBA’s position was based on what he considered inaccurate information about the Chief Justice’s actions.
“If you accuse a CJ of setting up a court during a vacation to hear certain cases and those facts are most inaccurate, the proper thing to do, the professional thing to do is to apologise,” he said.
He questioned whether the GBA could maintain its independence if its interventions consistently followed issues first raised by a political party or individuals associated with it.
“Does it mean that the Ghana Bar Association is not independent? Must it always or only toe the line of a political party? Is it that the president of the Ghana Bar Association does not have an independent mind to speak on matters?” he asked.
The comments come amid a public disagreement between the Ghana Bar Association and Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie.
GBA President Efua Ghartey recently criticised remarks attributed to the Chief Justice comparing the performance of some state institutions under the current administration with that of the previous eight years.
Ms Ghartey described the remarks as troubling and cautioned that they could create the impression that the Judiciary was aligning itself with the Executive.
Former Auditor-General Daniel Yaw Domelevo has also called on the Chief Justice to exercise restraint when commenting on political matters that could potentially become the subject of litigation.
The exchanges have intensified public discussion about judicial independence, the constitutional role of the Judiciary and the extent to which professional bodies such as the Ghana Bar Association should comment on politically sensitive issues.
Mr Dafeamekpor also accused the Ghana Bar Association of becoming overly focused on political controversies while giving insufficient attention to what he described as more fundamental developments within Ghana’s legal profession.
He pointed to recent legal reforms, including legislation affecting legal education and the establishment of district tribunals, which he said deserved greater attention at the GBA’s national conference.
The Majority Chief Whip further alleged that the association’s interventions concerning the Chief Justice had become excessive.
“I’ve listened to her, and I’ve seen that she’s just on an attack spree, attacking the Chief Justice, attacking everyone,” he said.
Mr Dafeamekpor maintained that lawyers and professional associations have an important responsibility to protect the Judiciary and uphold public confidence in the justice system.
However, he insisted that such interventions should be based on verified facts and undertaken without partisan cons
CNR