Chief Justice (CJ), Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah, has given Justice Kwasi Boakye, Presiding Judge of Cape Coast High Court II, the go-ahead to continue with the embattled Assin North Member of Parliament’s (MP) dual citizenship case.
The CJ’s response followed a petition by the Assin North MP, Joseph Gyaakye Quayson, requesting that the Chief Justice compelled Justice Boakye, who is sitting on his case, to excuse himself.
The MP had alleged that a comment, the Presiding Judge made, was prejudicial to the case and allowing him to continue proceedings would deny him of justice.
However, during its sitting on Monday, the Court learnt that the Chief Justice had written to the MP and copied Justice Boakye, asking that the MP used judicial processes to prosecute his allegations of bias against the High Court Judge.
The Judge revealed that the copy from the CJ indicated that the docket had not been transferred and that his jurisdiction in the proceedings had been affirmed.
The Court, consequently, continued proceedings and accepted an application by Abraham Amaliba, Counsel of Mr Quayson, who had indicated his intention to withdraw his services from the case and set Wednesday, July 14 for final judgment.
The Court noted that there was no point in delaying the case further because CI 47 permitted the Judge to grant Mr Amaliba’s application to withdraw his services from the case without having the first respondent served.
The Court also indicated that it had used applicable laws to dismiss the stay of motion application filed earlier by the legal team of the MP who had been accused of holding a dual citizen and should, therefore, not hold himself as an MP and there was no obstruction in giving a final judgement on the scheduled date.
On the change in legal representation for Mr Quayson, it was revealed that he had still not been served even after several prompts by the Judge to have Mr Amaliba facilitate the process in getting him served on his application to withdraw.
Mr Amaliba, after his application, was accepted by the Court on Monday, said the decision of the Court to give judgement on July 14 without notice to the first respondent was an “indecent haste”.
He said it was only proper that the first respondent was given the needed notice to seek for legal representation since his application to withdraw his services had been granted although Mr Quayson was yet to be served.
Counsel for the petitioner, Frank Davies, the opposing counsel was of the view that the MP’s legal team unceremoniously tried to delay the case, but was hopeful that justice would take its due course.
GNA