Parliament formally informs EC of Assin North’s vacant seat
Parliament of Ghana has formally informed Madam Jean Mensa, the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC) of the vacancy in the Assin North Constituency.
A letter signed by Mr Cyril Kwabena Nsiah, the Clerk to Parliament, and issued to the Ghana News Agency on Tuesday said, the decision had been necessitated by the judgement of the Supreme Court (SC) dated May 17, 2023.
It, therefore, requested the EC Chairperson to take the appropriate consequential action as required by law.
In a letter dated May 29, 2023, the Clerk to Parliament said: “In the exercise of the power conferred and the duty imposed on the Clerk to Parliament by section 3 of the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana (Amendment) Act, 1996 (Act 527), I, Cyril Kwabena Oteng Nsiah do hereby formally notify you of the occurrence of a vacancy in the Assin North constituency necessitated by the judgement of the Supreme Court.”
In the SC ruling in the case of Michael Ankomah Nimfah vs James Gyakye Quayson, the Electoral Commission of Ghana and the Attorney-General (AG) on Wednesday, May 17, 2023, ordered Parliament to expunge the name of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP), Mr James Gyakye Quayson, as a sitting MP.
The court held that the whole process leading to the election of Mr Quayson filing of nomination forms, the election itself and swearing-in–were all in violation of Article 94(2)(a) of the 1992 Constitution, which bars a person with dual citizenship from contesting as an MP.
It was the considered view of the court that as of the time, Mr Quayson filed his nomination forms in October 2020 to contest for the Assin North seat, he had not renounced his Canadian citizenship and, therefore, was not qualified per Article 94(2)(a) of the Constitution.
The SC further held that the EC also violated Article 94(2)(a) of the Constitution when it permitted Mr Quayson to contest the election.
“Upon the true and proper interpretation of Article 94(2)(a) the decision of the second defendant (Electoral Commission) to permit the first defendant (James Gyakye Quayson) to contest the parliamentary election of Assin North when the first defendant had not shown evidence of the cancellation of his citizenship of Canada is an act which is inconsistent with and violates Article 94(2)(a) of the 1992 Constitution,” the court held.
Accordingly, the court declared that the election of Mr Quayson as well as his swearing-in as an MP was unconstitutional, null, void and of no legal effect.
During the vetting of the Chief Justice Nominee, Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, on Friday, May 26, 2023, the Minority Leader, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, hinted at a letter he received from the AG, Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame, requesting Mr Alban Bagbin, Speaker of Parliament to declare the Assin North seat vacant in light of the recent Supreme Court judgment.
He said the A-G cited the apex court as ordering Parliament to expunge James Gyakye Quayson’s name from its records after it found that he failed to renounce his Canadian citizenship at the time of filing his nomination forms to contest the polls.
The vacancy, he said, would require a by-election to take place.
Source: GNA