Under Article 146 of the 1992 Constitution, the President referred the petition to the Chief Justice for an initial assessment to determine whether the allegations warranted further constitutional action.

Following a review, the Chief Justice advised the President that the issues raised did not meet the threshold of a prima facie case. The President has since informed the petitioner of this determination, effectively closing the matter.

Government Spokesperson and Minister of State in charge of Government Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, confirmed the development on X formerly twitter.

In the matter of a petition brought against Justice Yonny Kulendi, the following facts suffice.

1) The President forwarded the petition to the Chief Justice to determine wether or not there was a prima facie case in accordance with Article 146 of the Constitution.

2) The Chief…

— Felix Kwakye Ofosu (@FelixKwakyeOfo1) December 16, 2025

Mr. Ofori-Atta said his petition is motivated by a keen interest in upholding the rule of law, good governance, and democracy.

The petition requests the CID to investigate Justice Kulendi and Richard Jakpa, “to unravel all acts of criminality disclosed by their conduct, and take such prosecutorial action as is consistent with law.”

According to the petition, the trial of the accused persons began in January 2023. It alleges that Richard Jakpa used his familial connection with Justice Kulendi to obstruct justice, with the ultimate objective of either securing his acquittal or having the prosecution against him abated by the then Attorney-General, Godfred Yeboah Dame.

The petition asserts that the actions of Justice Kulendi and Richard Jakpa may constitute criminal offenses relating to interference with legal proceedings under the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29).

Key allegations cited in the petition include:

1. Intervention at Arraignment: On January 18, 2023, after Richard Jakpa was arraigned, he allegedly solicited Justice Kulendi’s help to influence the Attorney-General to permit his release, even though he had not met the bail conditions. Justice Kulendi reportedly visited the former Attorney-General’s office to request this.

2. Facilitating Contact: Richard Jakpa reportedly obtained the Attorney-General’s phone number from Justice Kulendi and attempted to meet him, sending numerous WhatsApp messages, which were admitted as evidence during the trial on June 18, 2024. The Attorney-General refused these meeting requests.

3. WhatsApp Disparity: Trial records show that Richard Jakpa sent 68 WhatsApp messages to the former Attorney-General, who responded only twice, as confirmed under cross-examination by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Mrs. Yvonne Atakora-Obuobisa.

4. Secret Meetings: When the Attorney-General declined Jakpa’s requests, Justice Kulendi allegedly held private meetings at his residence on at least four occasions, secretly inviting Jakpa to interfere in the legal proceedings. This included attempts to halt the prosecution or ensure Jakpa’s release during the submission of no-case stage of the trial. Trial records indicate that outside the courtroom and Justice Kulendi’s residence, the Attorney-General had no interactions with Jakpa.

The petition includes copies of WhatsApp communications between Jakpa and the Attorney-General, as well as court records demonstrating potential interference in legal proceedings.

Mr. Ofori-Atta has indicated that he plans to petition the President to remove Justice Yonny Kulendi on grounds of misconduct and stated misbehavior.

Source: Maxwell Kudekor

However, those criticisms must be constructive and devoid of insult and personality attacks.

“As trustees of the people’s power of justice, we are willing to be criticised. Criticise us as violently as you can, but for Christ sake, don’t insult us, don’t beret us, don’t speak hatred and don’t malign us,” he said.

He said journalists and judges have similar responsibilities of serving the people of Ghana, therefore those responsibilities must be discharged in the supreme interest of the country.

Justice Kulendi was speaking on behalf of the Chief Justice, Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah, at a joint press conference in Accra Wednesday by the Judicial Service and media bodies at the forecourt of the Supreme Court.

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The media bodies were the National Media Commission (NMC), Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Private Newspaper Publishers Association of Ghana (PRINPAG) and Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association (GIBA) represented by their respective heads.

Also present at the press conference was the President of the Ghana Bar Association, Mr Tony Forson.

The press conference was to remind the media about the need to be circumspect in its reportage after tomorrow’s judgement of the 2020 presidential election petition.

It was also on the back of the hells of a recent bad between the Judicial Service and the media which lead to statements and counter statements from the two sides.

A Supreme Court Judge, Emmanuel Yonny Kulendi, has disclosed how he tried hard to avoid ex-President Rawlings but he was tracked down.

Justice Kulendi disclosed this when recounting fond memories of the statesman following his demise on Thursday, November 12, 2020.

“My personal habit was usually to avoid big men so I always managed to avoid President Rawlings in all manner of circumstances but he tracked me down,” he said.

Speaking on Joy FM’s SMS show, he described the late former President as an intriguing personality, who will never be forgotten.

He added Mr Rawlings’ personal aide had a responsibility to ensure they met at all costs, adding they had a mutual friendship as well.

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Detailing how cordial their friendship was, Justice Kulendi noted: “He commented on almost everything from my haircut, shoe, cufflinks, tie, suit and he said he was inspired. He is such an infectious individual.”

Listen to Justice Kulendi in the video above: