Isaac Kobina Abban Explained

Isaac Kobina Donkor Abban
Honorific-Suffix:
Office:9th Chief Justice of Ghana
(21st including Gold Coast)
Termstart:22 February 1995
Termend:21 April 2001
Appointer:Jerry Rawlings
Predecessor:Philip Edward Archer
Successor:Edward Kwame Wiredu
Office1:Chief Justice of Seychelles
Termstart1:1990
Termend1:1993
Appointer1:France-Albert René
Predecessor1:Earle Edward Seaton
Successor1:Durai Karunakaran
Office2:Electoral Commissioner of Ghana
Term Start2:1978
Term End2:1978
Predecessor2:Military rule
Successor2:Joseph Kingsley-Nyinah
Birth Date:1933
Birth Place:Agona Nkum, Central Region, Gold Coast
Death Place:Accra, Ghana
Alma Mater:Mfantsipim School
University of Nottingham

Isaac Kobina Donkor Abban (1933 – 21 April 2001) was the Chief Justice of Ghana between 1995 and 2001. He was the ninth person to hold this position since Ghana became an independent nation.[1]

Early life and education

Abban was born in 1933 at Agona Nkum in the Central Region. He had his secondary education at Mfantsipim School from 1948 to 1951. He left for the United Kingdom to study law at the University of Nottingham.[2]

Career

Abban was called to the English bar on 24 June 1958. He returned to Ghana in 1959 and entered private practice until he was called to the bench of the High Court in May 1970.[2]

Electoral Commissioner

Justice Abban was called to the Ghanaian bar on 18 April 1959. While a High Court Judge, he was appointed the electoral commissioner and supervised the controversial 'Union Government (UNIGOV)' referendum on 30 March 1978 during the Supreme Military Council (SMC) era. At a point during the referendum, he went into hiding in fear of his life from the military authorities.[3] This was because he opposed the attempts to rig the UNIGOV referendum by the military SMC government.[4] His successor Justice Kinsgley Nyinah supervised the 1979 election that saw Dr Limann win to become president of Ghana.

Chief Justice

Abban left for Seychelles where he served as the Chief Justice from 1990 to 1993.[4] On his return to Ghana, he rejoined the Judicial Service of Ghana and was appointed to the Supreme Court of Ghana. On 22 February 1995, he was appointed Chief Justice by the President, Jerry Rawlings.[4]

Death

Justice Abban was due to retire on 1 May 2001, for health reasons.[5] He died a few days before that on 21 April 2001 in Accra, Ghana at the age of 67.[4] [6]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: List of Chief Justices . 2007-04-13 . Official Website . Judicial Service of Ghana . https://web.archive.org/web/20070403005954/http://www.judicial.gov.gh/history/list%20of%20judicial%20officials/list%20of%20CJ.htm . 3 April 2007 . dead .
  2. The Weekly Review, Issues 125-137 . Stellascope Ltd. . 22 . 1977.
  3. Web site: History of Ghana – Post Independence Ghana . 2007-04-13 . 50th Independence Anniversary Celebration of Ghana . Ghana government . In furtherance of the UNIGOV policy, a referendum was held on 30 March 1978 to ascertain the wishes of Ghanaians on the issue. Halfway through the referendum, the Electoral Commissioner, Mr. Justice Isaac Kobina Abban, a judge of the High Court, had to give up his job, flee into hiding apparently to save his life. . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20070928100150/http://www.ghana50.gov.gh/history/index.php?op=postIndependence5 . 28 September 2007 .
  4. News: Ghanaian Chief Justice is dead . 2007-04-13 . africast.com . https://web.archive.org/web/20070928030840/http://news.africast.com/article.php?newsID=13159&strRegion=West . 28 September 2007 . dead .
  5. News: Chief Justice Retires . 2007-04-17 . General News of Tuesday, 10 April 2001 . Ghana Home Page.
  6. News: Chief Justice Abban Is Dead . 2007-04-13 . 22 April 2001 . General News of Sunday, 22 April 2001 . Ghana Home Page.