Ghanaian citizen drags Attorney-General to Supreme Court over Kotoka Airport renaming

A Ghanaian citizen has filed a suit at the Supreme Court of Ghana seeking to nullify the government’s decision to rename Kotoka International Airport, arguing that the move is unconstitutional and without legal effect.

Austin Kwabena Brako-Powers initiated the action on March 13, 2026, invoking the original jurisdiction of the apex court.

He maintains that the Executive does not have the authority to rename the airport unless the law that established its current name is first amended or repealed.

“Any Executive order purportedly issued to effect the renaming of Kotoka International Airport to Accra International Airport…is null, void, and of no legal effect,” he stated in the writ.

At the centre of the case is the General Kotoka Trust Decree of 1969 (NLCD 339), which formally established the airport’s name in law.

Brako-Powers is asking the court to declare that the decree remains valid and binding until Parliament lawfully changes it through legislation.

His lawyer, Michael Akosah of Adu-Gyamfi & Associates, filed the writ in Kumasi.

He further argues that the government’s decision, announced as part of a broader transport sector rebranding, violates Articles 11(1)(d) and 11(4) of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana.

Those provisions recognise existing laws and prescribe the legal procedures required for their amendment. The suit also cites Paragraph 8(1)(a) of NLCD 339, which outlines how any change to the airport’s designation must be carried out.

In addition to seeking declaratory reliefs, the plaintiff is requesting both interim and perpetual injunctions to restrain the Ministry of Transport, its agents, or any authorised persons from implementing the proposed name change. He argues that until NLCD 339 is lawfully amended, repealed, or set aside, no executive directive can override it.

Kotoka International Airport is named after Emmanuel Kwasi Kotoka, a leading figure in the 1966 Ghana coup d'état that removed Kwame Nkrumah from office.

He was killed a year later during a counter-coup attempt, after which the airport was named in his honour.

The proposed renaming has sparked public debate, with some questioning its necessity and others highlighting the historical significance of the current name.

Brako-Powers said he filed the case both in his personal capacity and in the public interest, stressing the need to uphold the 1992 Constitution of Ghana as the supreme law of the country.

The suit was filed under Rule 45(1) of the Supreme Court Rules, 1996 (C.I. 16), and the Attorney-General's Department of Ghana has fourteen days from the date of service to respond.