Evans Nimako, the Director of elections for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has applauded the Supreme Court for declaring the Assin North 2020 parliamentary election to be invalid.
According to Evans Nimako, the ruling by the supreme court upholds the party’s long-standing argument that Mr. Gyakye Quayson was ineligible to serve as a member of parliament, since he held dual citizenship before the election.
James Gyakye Quayson’s name must be removed from Parliament’s records as a Member of Parliament for the Assin North seat, the Supreme Court ruled on May 17, in a majority judgment. This follows a judgment of the apex court upholding an application invoking the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court on the constitutionality of the election of James Gyakye Quayson.
Evans Nimako, the NPP’s Director of elections, claimed that the Supreme Court had upheld the NPP’s position. He noted that after meeting with its legal counsel, the party will decide on its course of action.
He further stated that, should the Electoral Commission begin the necessary procedures, the NPP is prepared for a by-election in Assin North.
“We have always held the position that he [Mr. Quayson] was not qualified, and the Supreme Court has said so. We will meet our lawyers and decide our next line of action.”
Evans Nimako
After the court hearing, the plaintiff’s Attorney, Frank Davies, also expressed gratitude, saying that the court’s rulings support protecting the sanctity of the constitution.
A group calling themselves “Concerned Citizens of Assin North” petitioned the Central Region of the Electoral Commission in November 2020 to have Mr. Quayson’s candidacy withdrawn, on the grounds that he owed allegiance to Canada.
In the Assin North constituency for the 2020 elections, James Gyakye Quayson, who ran on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), received 17,498 votes representing (55.21%), while Abena Durowaa Mensah, the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) candidate, received 14,193 votes representing (44.79%).
Supreme Court Orders Parliament To Expunge Gyakye’s Name From Records
The Supreme Court ruled unanimously that name of James Gyakye Quayson should be expunged from the records of the Ghanaian Parliament as a Member of Parliament for the Assin North Constituency.
Gyakye Quayson was barred from taking office as an MP in Ghana, due to his citizenship as a citizen of Canada, the High Court in Cape Coast declared, and the plaintiff, Michael Ankomah-Nimfah, a teacher and resident of Yamoransa in the Central Region, filed the application as a result.
The plaintiff sought redress by invoking the original jurisdiction, arguing that Gyakye Quayson’s eligibility to run for office in 2020 and his subsequent election, were both illegal under the true and appropriate interpretation of Article 94(2)(a) of the 1992 Constitution.
The 2020 parliamentary election held in the Assin North Constituency was declared invalid because Mr. Quayson had violated the constitution’s prohibitions on holding dual citizenship, according to the Cape Coast High Court in the Central Region, which upheld Mr. Michael Akomah-Ninfa’s request.
At the Cape Coast Court of Appeal, Mr. Quayson later contested the verdict. However, the Supreme Court upon receiving the case, unanimously dismissed it. The decision of the Supreme Court’s seven-member bench prohibits James Gyakye Quayson from identifying himself as a member of Parliament (MP).
Mr. Gyakye Quayson went on trial for counts of perjury, making a false statutory declaration with knowledge, deceiving a public official, forging a passport, and making a false declaration.
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