Ghana Supreme Court temporarily halts decision to declare 4 MPs’ seats vacant

The Supreme Court docket of Ghana on Friday quickly halted Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin’s determination to declare the seats of 4 Members of Parliament (MPs) vacant. The courtroom order suspended enforcement of Bagbin’s ruling made on October 17, permitting the MPs to retain their positions in the intervening time.

The controversy arose when MP Haruna Iddrisu filed a movement invoking constitutional provisions that require MPs who change political events or run as independents to vacate their seats. The MPs affected—Cynthia Morrison (Agona West), Kwadjo Asante (Suhum), Andrew Amoako Asiamah (Fomena), and Peter Kwakye Ackah (Amenfi Central)—have been focused after asserting their intentions to contest the upcoming December 7 elections both as independents or on completely different get together tickets.

In his ruling, Bagbin cited Article 97 of Ghana’s 1992 Structure, which states that an MP’s seat turns into vacant in the event that they stop to be a member of their elected get together. Bagbin argued that this provision is crucial for sustaining get together loyalty inside Parliament. Nevertheless, this determination sparked an instantaneous backlash from the parliamentary majority, the New Patriotic Celebration. It led to a boycott of parliamentary proceedings in protest towards what they considered as an unconstitutional ruling favoring the opposition Nationwide Democratic Congress (NDC).

The Supreme Court docket’s keep adopted an pressing software by majority chief Alexander Afenyo-Markin, who contended that Bagbin’s ruling undermined democratic illustration and violated constitutional rights. The courtroom has instructed each the speaker and the lawyer normal to submit their statements inside seven days to facilitate a swift decision of this problem.

Ghana’s normal elections might be held on December 7, 2024, that includes presidential and parliamentary contests. Ghana holds normal elections each 4 years, usually on December 7. These elections decide the president and all 275 members of Parliament.