Supreme Court orders Parliament to erase Gyakye Quayson’s name as MP

A seven-member panel of the Supreme Court has ordered Parliament to expunge the name of James Gyakye Quayson as a Member of Parliament.

In the ruling, the apex court bars Mr Quayson from holding himself as a Member of Parliament, citinewsroom.com reports.

Mr Quayson was being investigated for counts of duplicity of a public official, fraud of an identification, intentionally making a bogus legal statement, prevarication, and misleading announcement.

Justice Jones Victor Dotse, Justice Nene Amegatcher, Justice Mariama Owusu, Gertrude Araba Torkornoo, Justice Prof. Henrietta Mensa-Bonsu, Justice Yonny Kulendi and Justice Barbara Ackah-Yensu declared that Mr Quayson was not qualified at the time he contested the election 2020.

Background

The State had on February 12, last year, charged James Gyakye Quayson with five counts being; deceit of a public officer, forgery of a passport, knowingly making a false statutory declaration, perjury, and false declaration.

As the trial continued on July 2022, his lawyers led by Lawyer Tsatsu Tsikata questioned the competency of the Prosecution’s First Witness, Richard Takyi-Mensah, a teacher and his subsequent tendering of his witness statements.

But, his objection was overruled by the trial Judge Justice Mary Maame Ekue Yanzu on grounds that the witness was competent and duly admitted the witness statements and paragraphs.

Dissatisfied with the High Court’s ruling, Mr. Quayson and his lawyers filed a motion at the Supreme Court seeking to quash the decision of the trial judge and order of Prohibition against the judge.