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A former president of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), Sam Okudzeto says Parliament has no authority or power to give directives to the General Legal Council (GLC).

Okudzeto said Parliament has no such power under the country’s constitution.

Parliament on Friday (29 October) passed a resolution to compel the General Legal Council (GLC) to admit all the 499 aggrieved law students who obtained at least 50% in the entrance exams but had been denied admission to the Ghana School of Law.

The resolution received bipartisan support after deputy majority leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin and deputy minority leader James Avedzi made a case for the resolution to be passed.

The resolution also compels the Attorney General and Minister of Justice to see to it that the GLC enforces the resolution.

But Sam Okudzeto disagrees with the directive given by Parliament.

Speaking on Asaase Radio Wednesday (3 November), Okudzeto said, “Under what authority…I’ve also been a Member of Parliament before but a lot of my people in Parliament just assume that because they are in Parliament they can do anything they like.”

“You [Parliament] don’t have any such authority or power…If you look at the constitution, it’s there black and white; the president and Parliament, nobody can tell them [Judiciary] what to do.”

He added, “the General Legal Council (GLC) is established under law. Where in the law is the power given to Parliament to give directives to the General Legal Council?…”