Clement Kojo Akapame, a Private Legal Practitioner and Senior Lecturer at the GIMPA Law School, has expressed confidence that Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin will uphold the Supreme Court ruling concerning the four vacant parliamentary seats.
Akapame’s comments come in response to the Supreme Court’s stay of execution regarding Speaker Bagbin’s earlier ruling, which declared four parliamentary seats vacant.
This decision followed a motion filed by former Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu and was based on constitutional provisions stipulating that Members of Parliament (MPs) intending to run as independent candidates must vacate their seats.
The MPs affected by this ruling include Cynthia Morrison (Agona West), Kwadjo Asante (Suhum), Andrew Amoako Asiamah (Fomena), and Peter Kwakye Ackah (Amenfi Central). They were deemed to have violated these provisions by either switching political affiliations or signalling their intention to contest as independents in the upcoming election.
Despite the Supreme Court’s decision, the Minority has insisted on occupying the Majority seats when Parliament reconvenes on Tuesday, October 22.
However, Majority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has emphasized that the Majority will exit peacefully, avoiding any confrontation with the Minority.
In an interview with Bernard Avle on The Point of View on Channel One TV, Akapame expressed scepticism about the Speaker disregarding the judicial order. He noted that Speaker Bagbin, being an experienced lawyer, is likely to adhere to the Supreme Court’s ruling.
Akapame argued that disobeying the court’s order would be counterproductive and could lead to chaos within the parliamentary system. He concluded that it would be in the best interest of the Speaker and the Parliament to respect the rule of law.
“I don’t think we will get there on Tuesday, I think that the Speaker being a very seasoned lawyer and knowing his experience, once an order is served on the Speaker from the Supreme Court.
“I think that the Speaker will respect the order or that is what I would expect the Speaker to respect the order and not to proceed.”
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