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A Think Tank, the Forum for Governance and Justice, on Thursday June 9, officially presented a petition to Her Lordship, the Chief Justice Georgina Wood, demanding her to use her reputable office to stop what it calls the needless victimization of some four lawyers who made comments about perceived corruption in the judiciary. The Forum is demanding that the Judicial Council sets up an independent enquiry to invite members of the public to submit complaints about corruption within the judiciary. The demand is one of five major requests contained in the petition which was received on behalf of the Chief Justice by the Secretary to the Judicial Service. The Convener of the Forum, Dr. Clement Apaak, told Citi News his outfit hopes to receive the Chief Justice�s response anytime soon. �We have asked that she should initiate credible and measurable action to ensure that judicial accountability is entrenched in order exorcise the canker of corruption which has bedeviled the institution. We have asked that she should ensure the absolute independence of the judiciary which is a non-negotiable principle underpinning any good justice delivery system�. �We have asked her to ensure that the Association of Magistrates and Judges does not become a threat to judicial independence as it appears to be. We have also asked her to consider a review of the Association�s mandate. It appears to have become a Labour union which judges and magistrates are not allowed to form. It is our hope that we will hear very positively from her Lordship because our goal is not to malign the judiciary. We are only asking that the four lawyers should be treated fairly� he noted. It will be recalled that a High Court Judge on Thursday May 19, refused to sit on a case because one of four lawyers who had alleged corruption against the judiciary was a defense counsel in the case. The four, Dr. Raymond Atuguba, Executive Secretary of the Constitutional Review Commission; Mr. Larry Bimi, Chairman of the National Commission on Civic Education; Mr. David Annan, a member of the NDC legal committee; and Mr. Abraham Amaliba, who were speaking at a forum organized by the NCCE, created the impression that corruption in the judiciary was no more a perception but a reality. As a result, the Association of Magistrates and Judges of Ghana (AMAJ) petitioned the General Legal Council to demand that the said lawyers produce evidence to back up their claims or face the necessary sanctions. They also threatened to recuse themselves from any case being handled by the four. True to their words, an Accra High Court judge carried out the threat, and refused to sit on a case led by Dr Raymond Atuguba until the successful resolution of their petition. This has been met with mixed reactions hence the advocacy by the Think Tank, Forum for Governance and Justice, to get the Chief Justice to intervene and nullify the actions of the Magistrates and Judges.