Assin North: Don’t waste resources on criminal case against Gyakye Quayson – Kpebu

The Cape Coast High Court in the Central Region declared the 2020 parliamentary election held in the Assin North Constituency null and void.

The court, therefore, ordered for a fresh election to be conducted in the constituency.

This ruling was given on Wednesday, July 28, 2021, by the court presided over by Justice Kwasi Boakye.

In his judgement, Justice Boakye upheld that, the National Democratic Congress’ 2020 parliamentary candidate for the constituency, Joe Gyakye Quayson breached the provisions of the constitution with regard to dual citizenship.

The ruling means that the NDC’s seats in Parliament have dropped to 136 as against the NPP’s 137 until a by-election is held to determine who wins the seat.

After he was declared winner in the constituency’s election, Mr. Quayson was dragged to court by Michael Ankomah-Nimfa, a resident of Assin Bereku in the Central Region.

Mr. Akomah-Ninfa filed a petition at the Cape Coast High Court seeking to annul the declaration of Mr. James Gyakye Quayson as the Member of Parliament for the Assin North Constituency for owing allegiance to Canada.

In November last year, a group calling itself ‘Concerned Citizens of Assin North’ petitioned the Electoral Commission in the Central Region to withdraw the candidature of Mr. Quayson, arguing that he owes allegiance to Canada.

According to Article 94 (2) (a) of the 1992 constitution of Ghana, “A person shall not be qualified to be a member of Parliament if he or she – (a) owes allegiance to a country other than Ghana.”

Background

The National Democratic Congress (NDC), had insisted that their MP is “a full citizen of Ghana who owes no allegiance whatsoever to any other country. He is a Ghanaian in law and, in fact, qualifies to be a Member of Parliament according to the laws of Ghana.”

Recent history has seen a former Member of Parliament jailed for a similar 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, but died a few years later.