Stop bribing judges if you want a cleaner Judiciary – Justice Kulendi tells Ghanaians

Supreme Court Judge Justice Emmanuel Yonny Kulendi has called on Ghanaians to stop offering bribes to judges, insisting that the fight against corruption in the judiciary requires the active cooperation of the public.

He argued that while corruption exists within the justice system, those who attempt to influence court outcomes through bribery also contribute significantly to the problem.

“I say to people, listen, judges don’t give themselves bribes. It is litigants and Ghanaians who will offer the judge their bribe, even for the judge to contemplate it. So stop bribing your judges because the judge is not supposed to sell justice to you,” he said.

Justice Kulendi acknowledged that some judicial officers engage in corrupt practices but stressed that such cases should not overshadow the many judges and court officials who continue to serve with honesty and professionalism.

“I’m not one of those who will say that there are no corrupt judges or there are no corrupt judicial officers. Then they must have come from some other planet, and they are not Ghanaians,” he said.

“So the judges are just a cross-section of Ghanaians. And so to the extent that our society has corrupt people, some of them have filtered into the judiciary.”

He further explained that the judiciary naturally attracts individuals with corrupt intentions because of the significant authority judges exercise in resolving disputes.

“The judiciary presents a very predatory and opportunistic avenue for somebody who is already disposed to corruption to manifest that outrageous disposition fully. So it is there,” he said.