In light of the Supreme Court’s ruling that James Gyakye Quayson of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) is ineligible to fill the Assin North Parliamentary seat, Parliament by its Clerk declared the seat vacant.
On May 17, Ghana’s Supreme Court ruled unanimously that James Gyakye Quayson’s name should be expunged from the records of the Parliament for the Assin North constituency.
The Clerk in a memo to the Electoral Commission stated: “In the exercise of the power conferred and the duty imposed on the Clerk to Parliament by section 3 of the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana (Amendment) Act, 1996 (Act 527), I, CYRIL KWABENA OTENG NSIAH, Clerk to Parliament do hereby formally notify you of the occurrence of a vacancy in the Assin North Constituency necessitated by the Judgement of the Supreme Court dated 17 May 2023 vide Writ No. J1/11/2022 issued in respect of James Gyakye Quayson in the case of Michael Ankomah Nimfah vs James Gyakye Quayson.
The Electoral Commission of Ghana and the Attorney-General request you to take appropriate consequential action as required by law.”
Background
In November 2020, 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.
In the 2020 elections, James Gyakye Quayson, the parliamentary candidate for the National Democratic Congress in Assin North, received 17,498 votes (55.21%), while Abena Durowaa Mensah, a candidate for the New Patriotic Party, received 14,193 votes (44.79%).
Michael Ankomah-Nimfah, a teacher and resident of Yamoransa in the Central Region, subsequently filed a petition at the Cape Coast High Court after the election seeking to annul the declaration of Mr. Quayson as the MP Assin North.
The Cape Coast High Court in the Central Region upheld Mr. Akomah-Nimfah’s request and declared the 2020 parliamentary election held in the Assin North Constituency as null and void because Mr. Quayson breached the provisions of the constitution with regard to dual citizenship.