The lawyer for the plaintiff in the Assin North MP case, Frank Davies, has welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision to restrain James Gyakye Quayson from holding himself as the MP for Assin North.
Speaking to the press after the Supreme Court decision on Wednesday, April 13, 2022, Mr. Davies said the decision also counted as justice for the Assin North constituency.
Mr. Davies was speaking after the Supreme Court restrained James Gyakye Quayson from holding himself as the MP for the Assin North.
“Because of what we had put before the court, my expectation was that the constitution of the land will be upheld and the constitution of the land will be given the highest priority.”
He also said the court’s decision was in the interest of the people of Assin South.
“You can’t have an ineligible person running around as a Member of Parliament when he is not. It obviously leads to a mutilation of the sovereign will of the people of Assin North.”
“They are better off without someone who is parading as a Member of Parliament when he is not,” Mr. Davies added.
Background
This decision was taken in a petition brought before the Supreme Court by Michael Ankomah-Nimfa, a resident of Assin Bereku in the Central Region.
Mr. Ankomah-Nimfa had earlier secured a judgment at the Cape Coast High Court overturning the election of Mr. Quayson as null and void, but the embattled legislator ran to the Court of Appeal to have the decision set aside.
Mr. Ankomah-Ninfa is challenging the eligibility of Mr. Quayson as the MP for Assin North following allegations that he held dual citizenship prior to contesting the MP position.
Although the Court of Appeal dismissed his case, Mr. Quayson subsequently went to the Supreme Court to have his issue resolved.
Michael Ankomah-Nimfah also took the issue to the Supreme Court to seek interpretation of Article 94 (2)(a) of the 1992 Constitution.
In the same case, Mr. Ankomah-Nimfah asked the apex court to place an injunction on Mr. Quayson from holding himself as the MP for Assin North until the final determination of the case.
In his statement of case, Mr. Quayson insisted that he had renounced his Canadian citizenship before contesting the Assin North parliamentary seat.