Supreme Court suspends promotion of 40 police officers pending appeal

The Supreme Court has temporarily halted the promotion of 40 police officers to the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), following a legal dispute over their exclusion from a promotion arrangement introduced by the Ghana Police Service in 2021.

The order stays the execution of a Court of Appeal judgment which had directed the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Christian Tetteh Yohuno, and the Police Management Board to facilitate the promotion of the affected officers.

The Supreme Court's intervention means that the promotions cannot be enforced under the Court of Appeal judgment until the pending appeal is determined or the stay is otherwise lifted.

How the dispute began

The case originated from a promotion amnesty introduced by the Police Management Board in 2021 to provide career advancement opportunities for certain personnel within the Ghana Police Service.

Under the arrangement, officers recruited between December 2008 and 2020 who possessed first-degree qualifications became eligible for consideration for promotion.

However, 40 officers holding the rank of Chief Inspector claimed they had been excluded from the exercise, although they believed they satisfied the applicable requirements.

Their concerns were heightened by the fact that other personnel, including some officers junior to them, had benefited from the arrangement.

According to the affected officers, the exercise resulted in promotions across several ranks, including Corporal to Sergeant, Sergeant to Inspector and Inspector to Chief Inspector.

They maintained that their exclusion from promotion to the rank of ASP amounted to unequal treatment.

High Court dismisses officers' case

Following their exclusion, the officers commenced legal proceedings against the IGP and the Police Management Board at the High Court in Kumasi.

They sought an order compelling the police authorities to promote them from Chief Inspectors to Assistant Superintendents of Police.

The High Court, however, dismissed their action, declining to grant the relief they sought.

Dissatisfied with that outcome, the officers challenged the decision at the Court of Appeal.

The appellate court subsequently ruled in their favour, setting aside the High Court's judgment and directing the police authorities to effect the promotions.

Supreme Court halts implementation

The matter eventually reached the Supreme Court, where a challenge to the Court of Appeal's decision is now pending.

In its latest ruling, the apex court granted a stay of execution, preventing the enforcement of the promotion order while the appeal remains before it.

The decision does not amount to a final determination of whether the 40 officers are entitled to promotion.

Rather, it preserves the existing position until the Supreme Court considers the substantive appeal and determines whether the Court of Appeal's judgment should stand.

For now, the affected officers must await the outcome of the proceedings before any promotion can be enforced pursuant to the disputed judgment.