Invest in alternative dispute resolution – Practitioners appeal to govt

The Ghana National Association of ADR Practitioners (GNAAP) is calling on the government to invest in upgrading the infrastructure of the courts to create offices and conference rooms for mediators.

It said the conditions under which mediation sessions were held in the courts did not portray any importance of the country’s quest to employ alternative dispute resolution (ADR) as a means of settling disputes.

Additionally, it urged the government to invest in improving the legal framework governing the work of ADR professionals, as well as invest in the capacity building of practitioners.

The President of GNAAP, Daniel Owusu Koranteng, who made the call, acknowledged that the judicial system inherited from the colonial past was based on litigation, which mostly failed to resolve most of the disputes and serve justice to people.

ADR, he said, was a people-centred means of resolving disputes, consequently stressing that without doubt “ADR will play a key role in the transformation of our legal system”.

Graduation

He was addressing a graduation ceremony during which 58 professionals who went through training at the Institute of Paralegal Training and Leadership Studies (IPLS) in Accra were passed out.

People from varied backgrounds thus graduated as certified alternative dispute resolution professionals.

The ceremony was on the theme: “ADR, a path to a more just and peaceful world”.

Choked courts

Mr Koranteng observed that currently the courts were choked with cases, adding that one of the best ways out was to channel some of the cases through ADR.

“Access to justice is becoming the preserve of those who have the financial muscles to fund it,” he said, stressing that a legal system where access to justice was based on the affordability of funding litigation for many years “is access denial for many citizens who fall within the poverty brackets”.

“In my view, money should not be a barrier to any citizen who wants to access justice,” Mr Koranteng said.

Other reforms

Mr Koranteng further advocated that court-related ADR mediators be paid adequate remuneration to merit the ethical and professional responsibilities required of them in the discharge of their responsibilities.

He called on the government to review the ADR Act 79822 to include GNAAP as the governing body of the ADR Centre.

He admitted that at the time of drafting the ADR Act in 2010, there was no professional body for ADR practitioners in the country.

“But now, we have GNAAP as the only ADR professional body in Ghana,” Mr Koranteng stated.

Honesty

Addressing the graduates, he advised them to be honest “because in the country today, authentic, honest and genuine people are becoming scarce”.

“So if you are identified as someone honest, it makes you out as different,” Mr Koranteng added.

He advised them that their focus should not be on money, “but sometimes there are openings for you. This course opens doors”.

“So I want to encourage you that when the opportunity comes that you should do this practice as a national duty do not hesitate,” he advised the graduates.

Chieftaincy issues

A Political Science Lecturer at the University of Ghana, Dr Kwame Asah-Asante, who was the guest speaker, urged the graduates to use what they learnt to address the numerous chieftaincy and land issues in the country, adding, “We can cure these through ADR.”

He said with ADR, “It is straight to the point. At the end of the day, it does not leave bitterness in the hearts and minds of people”.

“If you cry, we will share with you the pain, and if you compare that one to regular court practice, you can die, and you can go home and hang yourself, Nobody cares.

Once the decision is handed down, there is no mercy,” he added.