In a strong critique of the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on the four parliamentary seats that were declared vacant by the Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, Mensah Thompson, Executive Director of the Alliance for Social Equity and Public Accountability (ASEPA), has voiced serious concerns about what he described as a fundamental “misinterpretation” of the Constitution.
The decision, stemming from the case of Afenyo-Markin v. Speaker of Parliament & Attorney General, according to Mensah Thompson effectively nullified Article 97(1)(g) of the 1992 Constitution, which states that a Member of Parliament (MP) must vacate their seat if they contest under another party’s banner.
“And so the Supreme Court has practically overturned that provision. What they have done is not interpret Article 97 because if you read the provision of Article 97 clearly, no issue of interpretation arises because it is clear. The Supreme Court has held in so many cases that an interpretation of a constitutional or statutory provision does not arise because parties put conflicting or rival meanings to the provision.
“But when the provision itself gives rise to more than one single meaning, that is when the issue of interpretation arises. In this case, the issue of interpretation never arose because the provision of article 97(k) was clear “
Mensah Thomspon, Executive Director of the Alliance for Social Equity and Public Accountability (ASEPA)
Mensah Thompson further pointed out that the Supreme Court’s ruling has, in effect, deemed a constitutional provision unconstitutional, emphasizing that the judiciary’s duty is to uphold, not reinterpret, explicit legal texts.
Discord between Supreme Court’s Ruling and Political Parties’ Constitution
He also highlighted the discord between the court’s ruling and the regulations of the country’s main political parties, including the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
“If you look at the NPP constitution, any member of parliament who files on a ticket of another party to contest in an election that the party is contesting has forfeited their membership. The same with the NDC constitution. The same with most of the constitutions of the political parties in the country.
“And so if you put the internal provisions of these parties on one side, you put the constitutional provision on one side, then clearly, even though the Supreme Court has performed its mandate of interpretation and enforcement, what they’ve done justice cannot be seen to have been done in this particular instance”.
Mensah Thomspon, Executive Director of the Alliance for Social Equity and Public Accountability (ASEPA)
He further pointed out that the ruling could have significant implications for parliamentary activities and potentially result in legislative deadlock in the 9th Parliament. He noted that Parliament might encounter constitutional hurdles as a result of this decision.
He recalled that in 2020, the NPP itself had petitioned the then Speaker of Parliament to declare the Fomena seat vacant for the same reason now overturned by the court.
Additionally, Mensah Thompson drew attention to the logistical challenge facing the NPP in securing its MPs’ presence when Parliament resumes next week. While over 100 NPP MPs initially signed a petition to recall Parliament, he noted that attendance had recently declined.
“Less than 50 NPP MPs attended the last session despite the petition.”, he said, positing that without a quorum, the recalled Parliament will be forced to adjourn once more, anticipating continued legislative stalemate if NDC MPs choose not to participate.
Looking forward, Mensah Thompson concluded, “This issue cannot be definitively resolved in the courts alone, asserting that the contradictions and ambiguities it introduces require legislative intervention, but without a working quorum, it risks gridlock”.
With this decision, ASEPA’s Executive Director envisioned growing tensions between constitutional law and parliamentary processes, calling for political and judicial leaders to seek a durable solution that upholds Ghana’s democratic integrity.
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