A parliamentary election petition has been filed at the Cape Coast High Court seeking to annul the declaration of Mr. James Gyakye Quayson as the Member of Parliament (MP) elect for the Assin North Constituency.
The petition filed by one Michael Ankomah -Nimfa of Assin Bereku, has served the Electoral Commission (EC) as the second respondent and another.
The respondents have eight days to enter an appearance or in default, the case will be heard and judgement pronounced in their absence.
Mr. Quayson, the National Democratic Congress’ (NDC) MP-elect, polled 17,498 against New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Madam Abena Durowaa Mensah who had 14,793 on December 7, 2020 election.
In November last year, a group calling itself ‘Concerned Citizens of Assin North’ petitioned the EC in the Central Region to withdraw the candidature of Mr. Quayson as he owes allegiance to Canada.
He was challenged for having dual citizenship contrary to the expressed provision of Article 94 (2) (a) of the 1992 constitution of Ghana, which states, “A person shall not be qualified to be a member of Parliament if he – (a) owes allegiance to a country other than Ghana.”
Recent history has seen a former Member of Parliament being jailed for such an offence.
In 2012, the Accra Fast Track High Court sentenced the NPP’s Adamu Dramani Sakande to two years imprisonment after he was found guilty of false declaration of office, perjury, and deceit of a public officer.
His status as the MP for Bawku Central was challenged due to his dual citizenship.
Adamu Sakande contested the Bawku Central seat on the ticket of the NPP in the 2008 election and snatched the seat from Mahama Ayariga before he was jailed.
He was granted a presidential pardon on December 31, 2012, by the then President, John Dramani Mahama, based on medical grounds.
Meanwhile, the NDC says Mr. Quayson renounced his Canadian citizenship in 2019 and no longer owes allegiance to that country.