Supreme Court dismisses James Quayson's review motion against injunction
On April 13, 2022, the Supreme Court upheld an injunction application by Michael Ankomah Nimfah thus restraining the Assin North MP, James Gyakye Quayson from holding himself as an MP for the constituency.
The Supreme Court has unanimously dismissed a review application by injuncted Assin-North Member of Parliament, James Gyakye Quayson.
Mr. Quayson’s application was seeking to overturn the Supreme Court decision of April 13, 2022, restraining him from holding himself as an MP, or from performing any parliamentary duty, until the substantive application by private citizen Michael Ankomah-Nimfah is determined.
Through his lawyers, Mr. Quayson filed the application on April 26, 2022, arguing among other things that the court’s April 13, 2022 decision “was in patent and fundamental error and violated article 129(3) of the Constitution.”
He said the decision of the court failed to appreciate that the suit was in reality an attempt to enforce the decision of the High Court disguised as an invocation of the Original Jurisdiction of the Supreme Court.
In Court today, June 14, 2022, counsel for the embattled Assin North MP, Mr. Tsatsu Tsikata, in his submission noted that the Ordinary Bench of the Court went against the whole line of precedents it has established by granting the April 13 injunction application.
Citing Yeboah V J.H.Mensah, Bimpong Buta case amongst others, he thus called on the Court to review its decision according to its own precedents.
On his part, Frank Davies, counsel for Michael Ankomah-Nimfah opposed to this submission and noted that no case at all has been made by the applicant to necessitate the Court's review jurisdiction.
Furthermore, Mr. Davies dispelled the notion portrayed by the applicant's counsel as if the case before the Court was a Parliamentary election petition.
Counsel for the second respondent, the EC had nothing to say except to agree with all submissions made by Frank Davies.
The Deputy Attorney General, Diana Asonaba-Dapaah was also of the view that the grounds for the review application per order 54 had not been met by the applicant thus called on the Court to dismiss the application.
The nine-member panel presided over by Dotse JSC was of the view that the applicant has failed to meet the threshold for reviewing the April 13 injunction ruling of the Court.
The April 13 Ordinary panel had Justices Jones Dotse, Nene Amegatcher, Gertrude Torkornoo, Prof Henrietta Mensah-Bonsu, Agnes Dordzie, Mariama Owusu and Yonny Kulendi. However, two more Justices, Amadu Tanko and Prof. Nii Ashie Kotey were added today to form the review Bench.
Background
On April 13, 2022, the Supreme Court upheld an injunction application by Michael Ankomah Nimfah thus restraining the Assin North MP, James Gyakye Quayson from holding himself as an MP for the constituency.
By a 5-2 ruling, the court said the application from Michael Ankomah Nimfah succeeds.
On February 1, 2022, the applicant Michael Ankomah-Nimfah, filed a writ seeking the interpretation of Article 94 (2a) and an injunction of the Member of Parliament from holding himself as such.
The petitioner also contended that Hon Quayson was not eligible on the basis that at the time of filing his parliamentary nomination, he held citizenship of another country (Canada) in addition to Ghana.
