Pictured: The Circuit Courtroom with non-working fans owing to the power outage

The Weija Court Complex located near the Weija-Gbawe Health Centre in the Weija-Gbawe Municipal area has become notorious for frequent power outages attributable to the frequent unavailability of pre-paid credit for the meter of the Complex.

Lawyers, Court officers and litigants are usually compelled to sit in the courtrooms with no power and poor ventilation causing an uncomfortable experience for both litigants and Judicial officers with lawyers who are to appear in Court robed, the worst victims of the heat in the Courtrooms.

Some Court officers who spoke to The Law Platform on condition of anonymity indicated the regular occurrence of this phenomenon and the distress it visits on the entire Complex. A case in point was the occurrence of the phenomenon on Monday, the 3rd day of March, 2025 when the entire building was bereft of power and lawyers in the Circuit Court momentarily were compelled to sit outside for some fresh air owing to the heat in the Circuit Court room.

The situation compelled the learned Circuit Court Judge on the morning shift, His Honour Malcolm Bedzrah who comes across to lawyers before him as a sharp Judge and one who takes business of his Court very seriously to sit without robing. During proceedings of His Honour on Monday as observed by The Law Platform, beads of sweat were visible on the face of His Honour who prior to sitting had to familiarise himself with dockets for the day in his poorly ventilated and lit Chambers owing to the power outage. The said day was also the first day of work for His Honour as the Circuit Court Judge for the morning shift of the Weija Circuit Court.

Pictured: Litigants, Lawyers and Court officers waiting for His Honour to sit for proceedings to commence.

Unkempt washrooms

The Court facility also has challenges with clean washrooms while some are out of use. A visit by The Law Platform to the washrooms of the complex shows that for the visitor's washroom on the first floor, the said washroom is dusty, has a destroyed watercloset with the washroom now serving as a janitorial storage room. The staff washroom has no flowing water despite same being in use. This causes a foul stench which streams into the Circuit Courtroom right opposite the washroom.