James Gyakye Quayson
An appeal filed by the embattled Member of Parliament for Assin North, James Gyakye Quayson at the Court of Appeal sitting in Cape Coast has been struck out.
This is because the appellant, James Gyakye Quayson failed to file his written submission within the stipulated period allowed under the Court of Appeal Rules, 1997 (C.I. 19).
The written submission was to state the reasons for the appeal against the High Court ruling.
Per Rule 20 (1) of C.I. 19, an appellant before the Court of Appeal shall within three weeks of filing a notice of appeal, file written submissions.
According to Rule 20 (2), “Where the appellant does not file the written submissions of his case by sub-rule (1), the appeal shall be considered to have been struck out and the Registrar shall inform the parties accordingly.”
Background
Mr. Quayson polled 17,498 votes against 14,793 by the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Abena Durowaa Mensah in the December 7, 2020, parliamentary election.
On December 30, 2020, a resident of Assin North, Ankomah-Nimfah, filed a parliamentary election petition at the Cape Coast High Court challenging the eligibility of Mr. Quayson to be an MP.
On July 28, 2021, following that petition by Mr. Ankomah-Nimfah, the Cape Coast High Court declared Quayson’s election as void, on the basis that he owed allegiance to another country other than Ghana, contrary to Article 94(2) of the 1992 Constitution.
It was the considered view of the court that as of the time Mr. Quayson filed to contest the MP position, he had not renounced his Canadian citizenship and, therefore, he was not qualified to become a legislator.
The court presided over by Justice Kwasi Boakye, ordered the EC to organize a new election in the constituency.
Mr. Quayson filed an appeal at the Court of Appeal challenging the judgment of the Cape Coast High Court.
Meanwhile James Gyakye Quayson has been dragged to the Supreme Court for the court to stop him from holding himself out as a legislator.
A resident of Assin Breku, Michael Ankomah-Nimfah, who secured a judgment from the Cape Coast High Court nullifying the election of Mr. Quayson on the basis that he held Canadian citizenship, wants an injunction from the apex restraining him from holding himself as an MP.
The plaintiff argues that despite the judgment of the Cape Coast High Court, Mr. Gyakye continues to parade himself as a sitting MP.
He is also seeking an interpretation of Article 94(2)(a) of the 1992 Constitution which bars a person owing allegiance to another country from contesting as an MP, the same constitutional provision the High Court used to nullify the election.
The defendants in the case are Mr. Quayson, the Electoral Commission (EC), and the Attorney-General.
The Supreme Court is yet to rule on that case. It would be heard on March 29, 2022.
Aside from the other cases pending, the Attorney-General (A-G) has also charged James Gyakye Quayson with criminal offenses about his alleged dual nationality when he contested the 2020 parliamentary elections.
The Attorney-General (A-G) has dragged Mr. Quayson to the Accra High Court on five counts of forgery of passport or travel certificate, knowingly making a false statutory declaration, perjury, and false declaration for office.
It is the case of the A-G that Mr. Quayson allegedly made a false statement to the Passport Office that he did not hold a passport to another country when he applied for a Ghanaian Passport.
In addition, the A-G has accused Mr. Quayson of making a false declaration to the Electoral Commission (EC) to the effect that he (Quayson) did not owe any allegiance to a foreign country when he filed to contest as a candidate for the Assin North seat.