Also known as: Justice Sophia Akuffo · Her Ladyship Justice Sophia Akuffo · Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo · Ms. Akuffo · Madam Sophia Akuffo · former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo · Madam Akuffo · Justice Akuffo · Justice Sophia A.B. Akuffo · Sophia Abena Boafoa Akuffo · Sophia A. B. Akuffo · former Chief Justice Sophia A. B. Akuffo · former Chief Justice Akuffo
Former Chief Justice who resigned from Ghana's Council of State in September 2025 and was installed as Mmrahene of Akuapem Traditional Area in May 2026.
Former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo has resigned from the Council of State, sources familiar with the matter have informed Myjoyonline, bringing an end to her time on the country’s highest presidential advisory body. …
The Office of the Okuapehemaa, Nana Afua Nketiaa Obuo II, has cautioned against the reported enstoolment of former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo as Mmrahene of the Akuapem Traditional Area. …
… The order was made under the Practice Direction on Disclosure and Case Management in Criminal Proceedings 2018, signed by former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo. …
… Madam Sophia Akuffo, former Chief Justice of Ghana At a news conference addressed by former Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo, former Speaker of Parliament, Mike Oquaye and Board Chairman of the IEA, Dr. …
… Led by former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo, the IEA said Ghana has little transformative development to show after decades of allowing foreign firms to exploit its mineral resources under what it described as concessionary arrangements rooted in the colonial era. …
… Speaking at a press conference in Accra, former Chief Justice and IEA Fellow Sophia Akuffo supported calls for increased Ghanaian participation in the management of the country’s mineral resources, stressing the need for greater national control over strategic assets. …
… He explained that lawyers Sophia Akuffo and Mr. Premo had earlier been invited by investigators as suspects, but rescheduled their appearance because officers handling the matter were reportedly unavailable on the initial day. …
The POS Foundation has welcomed Parliament's passage of the Community Service Bill, 2026, which will allow courts to impose community service orders instead of custodial sentences for eligible offenders convicted of offences punishable by prison terms of less than three years. The Foundation says the law will reduce prison overcrowding, facilitate offender rehabilitation and reintegration, and strengthen restorative justice.
The POS Foundation has welcomed Parliament's passage of the Community Service Bill, 2026, which will allow courts to impose community service orders instead of custodial sentences for eligible offenders convicted of offences punishable by prison terms of less than three years. The Foundation says the law will reduce prison overcrowding, facilitate offender rehabilitation and reintegration, and strengthen restorative justice.
An opinion piece argues that former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo's resignation from Ghana's Council of State was not publicly disclosed until media reports emerged months later, raising concerns about democratic accountability and whether citizens should be informed when vacancies arise in this constitutional advisory body.
Former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo resigned from Ghana's Council of State in September 2025, but President Mahama did not confirm acceptance until June 2026, raising constitutional questions about the delay. Her resignation followed an August 2025 Council vote on removing Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, in which Akuffo abstained as the sole dissenting voice.
An opinion piece argues that the quiet resignation of former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo from Ghana's Council of State, announced only months later through media reports, represents a democratic accountability gap: while Council appointments are publicly announced, resignations have been treated as private matters, preventing citizens from knowing whether the constitutional body operates with vacancies or delayed replacements.
Former Director of the Ghana School of Law Kwaku Ansa-Asare has criticised the Council of State's composition as overwhelmingly partisan, arguing that members cannot freely express independent opinions and suggesting this may have contributed to recent high-profile resignations, including former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo's departure.
Legal academic Kwaku Ansa-Asare has argued that former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo's appointment to the Council of State was constitutionally flawed because it bypassed a more senior and constitutionally appropriate retired Chief Justice. He also criticized the government for delaying the public announcement of Akuffo's resignation until after it leaked to media.
Dr. Bossman Eric Asare, Deputy Chairperson of the Electoral Commission in charge of Corporate Services, has announced his resignation effective July 31, 2026, citing his desire to return to academia at the University of Ghana. His departure comes as another Deputy Chairperson, Samuel Tettey, has also retired, creating two vacancies at the Electoral Commission.
The Minister of State for Government Communications rejected claims that former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo stepped down from the Council of State in protest against the removal of former Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo, stating the government received no such communication and Akuffo's resignation letter contained no reference to Torkornoo's removal.
The government has confirmed that processes are underway to replace former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo on the Council of State following her resignation from the advisory body, which she submitted in September last year without stating her reasons.
Former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo has resigned from Ghana's Council of State, having submitted her resignation last year and ceased attending meetings since then. Her resignation follows a period in which she became central to a judicial crisis involving then Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, abstaining on a Council vote and later testifying in Torkornoo's defence.
The Office of the Okuapehemaa has cautioned former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo against an announced enstoolment as Mmrahene of Akuapem Traditional Area, citing unresolved legal and customary disputes surrounding the legitimacy of the chief presiding over the ceremony.
The Supreme Court has dismissed an application to halt the High Court trial of Gifty Oware-Mensah, former Deputy Executive Director of the National Service Authority, who faces charges of causing financial loss of more than GH¢38 million to the state. The court ruled that the accused's constitutional challenge to a practice direction does not justify suspending the trial.
The Institute of Economic Affairs has called on government to reject Gold Fields Ghana's request to extend its mining lease for the Tarkwa Mine, arguing that Ghana should take strategic control of the asset when the current lease expires in April 2027. The IEA contends that Ghana now has the capacity to manage the mine in its national interest and that renewing the lease would undermine the country's long-term economic and strategic goals.
The Institute of Economic Affairs has called on the government to reject Gold Fields' application for a 20-year lease extension of the Tarkwa Mine, arguing Ghana should reclaim ownership of the asset. The Ghana Chamber of Mines, however, warned that public pressure over the renewal risks damaging legal certainty and Ghana's reputation as a mining investment destination.
The Institute of Economic Affairs has opposed the renewal of Gold Fields' mining lease for Tarkwa, which expires in 2027, arguing that the decision would be harmful to Ghana's long-term interests and calling instead for a framework ensuring greater Ghanaian ownership. Gold Fields has applied for a 20-year extension and notes its Ghana operations account for about 25 per cent of the company's global gold output.
Construction of the Wa Court Complex, begun 26 years ago to relieve overcrowding in Upper West's courts, remains incomplete despite the contractor's claim of 90% completion. Members of Parliament's Judiciary Committee inspected the site and found the work unsatisfactory, vowing to summon the contractor Project Seven Limited to appear before Parliament.
Sophia Akuffo, a former Chief Justice and former President of the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights, will be installed as Mmrahene of the Akuapem Traditional Area on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, during the Awukudae celebration at the palace of the Okuapehene in Akropong-Akuapem.
The Executive Director of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), Raymond Archer, has dismissed assertions that two lawyers from Minka-Premo & Co. were arrested while representing their clients in PDS investigations. He stated that the lawyers had earlier been invited by investigators as suspects and that the PDS investigation is being jointly conducted by EOCO and the BNI, triggered by a petition from the Financial Intelligence Centre.