It all started when both sides of the House exchanged heated words over the legality for the MP-elect to partake in the election of a Speaker for the 8th Parliament.
Court injunction on Assin North MP-elect causes chaos in Parliament
Parliament came to a standstill over the presence of the Member of Parliament-elect for Assin North, Richard Quayson from being sworn-in.
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The National Democratic Congress (NDC) MPs said the summon was not properly served on the clerk of Parliament who is chairing the sitting whiles the New Patriotic Party (NPP) MPs argued that the MP-elect for Assin North cannot be allowed to vote since the court injunction bars him.
After rounds of counter-debates between both sides of the House, the Clerk of the House, Cyril Kwabena Oteng Nsiah, admitted to receiving the injunction and ruled that Quayson cannot participate in the vote of the Speaker for the 8th Parliament.
"I was duly served, and I am therefore unable to recognize James Quayson as MP-elect for the purposes of the election of Speaker. I will therefore accordingly proceed in the conduct of this election," he said.
Injunction
A Cape Coast High Court has placed an injunction on the Member of Parliament-elect for Assin North, Richard Quayson from being sworn-in.
The Court, chaired by Justice Kwasi Boakye ruled that Quayson was "restrained from holding himself out as Member of Parliament-elect for the Assin North constituency within the Central Region of the Republic of Ghana and further presenting himself to be sworn in as Member of Parliament-elect as such until the final determination of the petition."
The injunction was granted in a case filed by one Michael Ankomah-Nimfa of Assin Bereku who claims Quayson holds dual citizenship of Ghana and Canada.
In the substantive case, Ankomah-Nimfa is seeking to annul the declaration of Quayson as the winner of the December 7 polls because of the dual citizenship claims.
He based his case on Article 94 (2) (a) of the 1992 constitution of Ghana, which said "a person shall not be qualified to be a member of Parliament if he owes allegiance to a country other than Ghana."
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