Ministry of Justice and Attorney-General's Office

Ministry of Justice and Attorney-General's Office
Coat of arms of Ghana
Ministry overview
Formed1951 (1951)
  • Attorney-General’s Department (est. 1877)
JurisdictionGovernment of Ghana
HeadquartersAttorney-General & Ministry of Justice Building, Accra, Ghana
Minister responsible
Websitewww.mojagd.gov.gh

The Ministry of Justice and Attorney-General's Office of Ghana is the government ministry responsible for the legal affairs of the Republic of Ghana. It drafts legislation, advises the executive, oversees state prosecutions, and represents the Government of Ghana in civil cases. The office of the Attorney General, established in 1877, serves as the principal legal adviser to the government. The modern Ministry of Justice was created in 1951 following recommendations of the Lidbury Commission.[1]

History

The Ministry of Justice was created in 1951 after the Lidbury Commission reviewed the administration of the Gold Coast Civil Service and recommended a structure modelled on the British Home Office.[2] The first head of the ministry was P. F. Branigan, an English expatriate.[3]

In 1954, the Ministry of Justice was merged with the Ministry of Interior in the first all-African government. It re-emerged in 1956 as the Ministry of Interior and Justice under Ebenezer Ako-Adjei. Following Ghana’s independence in 1957, the ministry was again split, creating a separate Ministry of Justice and an independent Ministry for the Attorney General, led by Geoffrey Bing.[4]

Between 1958 and 1961, the ministry was merged with Local Government under Kofi Asante Ofori-Atta. It became a standalone ministry again in September 1961 and was reunited with the Attorney-General’s Ministry in 1965, forming the combined portfolio of Minister of Justice and Attorney General under Bashiru Kwaw-Swanzy.[5]

In 2004, Mrs Regina Ayerko Apotsi became the first woman to serve as Judicial Secretary, the 13th person to hold the post.

List of ministers

Main article: Attorney General of Ghana
Number Minister Portfolio Took office Left office Government Party
1 Ebenezer Ako-Adjei Minister for Interior and Justice 1956 August 1957 Nkrumah government Convention People's Party
Minister for Justice August 1957 1958
2 Kofi Asante Ofori-Atta Minister for Justice and Local Government 1958 September 1961
Minister for Justice September 1961 1965
3 Bashiru Kwaw-Swanzy Minister for Justice and Attorney General 1965 February 1966
4 Victor Owusu 1966 April 1969 National Liberation Council Military government
5 Nicholas Yaw Boafo Adade April 1969 September 1969
14 September 1969 January 1971[6] Busia government Progress Party
6 Victor Owusu January 1971 12 January 1972
7 Edward Nathaniel Moore 13 January 1972 8 October 1975 National Redemption Council Military government
8 Gustav Koranteng-Addow 9 October 1975 January 1979[7] Supreme Military Council Military government
9 Austin N. E. Amissah 1 January 1979 23 September 1979 Armed Forces Revolutionary Council Military government
10 Joe Reindorf 24 September 1979 August 1981 Limann government People's National Party
11 A. L. Djabatey 1 October 1981 31 December 1981
12 G. E. K. Aikins 25 June 1982 1988 Provisional National Defence Council Military government
13 E. G. Tanoh 14 December 1988 1 April 1993
14 Anthony Forson 1 March 1993 30 October 1993 Rawlings government National Democratic Congress
— Obed Asamoah (Acting AG) November 1993 May 1997
15 Obed Asamoah May 1997 6 January 2001
16 Nana Akufo-Addo 1 February 2001[8] 24 April 2003 Kufuor government New Patriotic Party
17 Papa Owusu-Ankomah 1 April 2003[9] 2005
18 J. Ayikoi Otoo 1 February 2005[10] 2006
19 Joe Ghartey 16 June 2006 7 January 2009 [11]
20 Betty Mould-Iddrisu [1st female][12] 2009 2011 Mills government National Democratic Congress
21 Martin Amidu 4 January 2011[13] 2012
22 Benjamin Kunbuor 25 January 2012[14] 24 October 2012
24 October 2012 7 January 2013 Mahama government
23 Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong February 2013[15] 7 January 2017
24 Gloria Akuffo February 2017[16] January 2021 Akuffo Addo government New Patriotic Party
25 Godfred Yeboah Dame January 2021 6 January 2025
26 Dominic Akuritinga Ayine 22 January 2025 Incumbent Mahama government National Democratic Congress

See also

References

  1. ^ "About the Ministry | Office of the Attorney-General & Ministry of Justice". Retrieved 26 June 2018.
  2. ^ Decentralised Administration in Africa: Policies and Training Experience. Management Development Programme, Commonwealth Secretariat. 1989.
  3. ^ Office, Great Britain Colonial (1953). Gold Coast. H.M. Stationery Office.
  4. ^ Nkrumah, Kwame (1957). Ghana's Policy at Home and Abroad. Information Office, Embassy of Ghana.
  5. ^ Assembly, Ghana National (1965). Parliamentary Debates; Official Report.
  6. ^ "Past Ministers". Official website of the government of Ghana. Government of Ghana. Archived from the original on 9 June 2019. Retrieved 27 August 2018.
  7. ^ Africa contemporary record; annual survey and documents, Volume 11. Africana Publishing Company. 1980. p. B-624. ISBN 9780841901605.
  8. ^ "Eleven Ministers Sworn-in". General news. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  9. ^ "Government names new Cabinet". General news. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  10. ^ "Twenty-nine Ministers sworn into office". General news. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  11. ^ "Kufuor restructures ministerial team". General news. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  12. ^ "First woman Attorney-General Sworn In".
  13. ^ "Cabinet reshuffle: Zita dropped, Betty for education". General news. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  14. ^ "Full Text Of Reshuffle By President Mills". General news. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  15. ^ "Kunbuor, others approved by Parliament".
  16. ^ "Gloria Akuffo nominated as Attorney General". Retrieved 1 June 2017.
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