Kwame Jantuah, a leading member of the Convention People’s Party (CPP), has sent a massage to Speaker of Ghana's Parliament, Rt. Hon. Alban Bagbin to recall Parliament immediately following the Supreme Court's ruling that declared his action to declare four seats vacant as unconstitutional.
Mr. Jantuah's reason is that, there are some important bills in the House that need to be passed before this Parliament rises; including the temporary budget for the handover of governance next year January 7, 2025.
Speaking on TV3's program; the "Big Issue" on Friday, November 15, Mr Jantuah said “The Supreme Court has made the decision, let the sleeping do lies. There are important bills to be passed before parliament rises, one of the bills is the temporary budget for handover so I will plead with the speaker to recall parliament, and let the sleeping dog lie. Let parliament reopen, NDC, you have made your point, Ghanaians who will support you will support, those who will not, will not do it, so please go back to your seats and let Parliament work. Mr. Speaker, recall parliament”.
Whiles urging the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament to return to their Minority position in the House, Mr. Jantuah cautioned the New Patriotic Party (NPP) MPs not to celebrate the Supreme Court decision to anger their colleagues in the other side.
Background:
The Supreme Court of Ghana on Tuesday, November 12, made a landmark ruling that clarifies the conditions under which a parliamentary seat can be vacated. According to the court, a Member Of Parliamen seat can only be vacated if they switch political parties, not simply because they choose to run as independent candidates in the next election.
This ruling directly impacts the Speaker of Parliament, Rt Hon. Alban Bagbin's, previous decision regarding vacant seats. The court deemed it unlawful for Bagbin to declare seats vacant solely due to lawmakers filing to run as independents in the 2024 elections.
The court's reasoning centers around Article 97(1)(g) and (h), which states that a parliamentary seat is only vacated when an MP leaves their elected party to join another party while seeking to remain in parliament as a member of the new party.
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