"TRIBUNALS WILL COMPLEMENT, NOT UNDERMINE COURTS" - ATTORNEY-GENERAL DEFENDS TRIBUNALS BILL

The Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Hon. Dr. Dominic Akuritinga Ayine, has defended the Tribunals Bill 2026, saying the reintroduction of Regional and District Tribunals will complement, not undermine, the existing judicial system.  

Addressing a press conference in Parliament, Dr. Dominic Ayine disagreed with arguments that tribunals should not be brought back because of past excesses.  

"I think that the whole argument about the tribunals is based on what I’ve said, that there were excesses and so we shouldn’t bring back anything resembling what existed in the past. I disagree with that," he said.

He further dismissed claims that bringing back tribunals means government is abandoning the current court system. 

"I also disagree with the view that bringing back the tribunals means that we are not working with the existing judicial system in order to expedite trials in our country. In fact, we are complementing what exists by bringing back the Regional Tribunals and the District Tribunals."  
 
Dr. Ayine also emphasized President John Dramani Mahama’s commitment to resourcing the judiciary.  

"I want to make it abundantly clear that His Excellency John Dramani Mahama, in dealing with matters relating to the judiciary, has been very, very, very forthright in making resources available to the judiciary."  

He pointed to the creation of specialized courts as further evidence.  

"And talking about the creation of specialized courts, we have specialized courts that have been created within the traditional court system to deal with matters relating to ORAL as well as matters relating to illegal mining. That’s how come we have about 5 special courts that deal with ORAL trials as well as the matters relating to illegal mining."  

The Attorney-General concluded that there is no contradiction in reintroducing tribunals.  

"So there is no contradiction whatsoever in bringing back the tribunal system. We are not in any way undermining the traditional judiciary.