It is an abuse of process – James Quayson prays Supreme Court to dismiss case against him

Embattled Assin North Legislator, James Gyakye Quayson has under the instructions of the Apex Court filed a  statement of case in response to a petition filed against him by Micheal Ankomah-Ninfah.

Mr Quayson in his response prayed the Supreme Court to describe the petition as frivolous vexatious and abusive of court processes and in bad faith.

He also described the petitioner’s case as “blatant forum shopping” and should not be countenanced by the Supreme Court.

“This court should, with respect, not allow any litigant to act in such bad faith and engage in blatant forum shopping in instituting a new action for the determination of a matter already before another panel of this Court and also pending before other lower courts. The Plaintiff, while urging the panel of the Supreme Court before whom 1st Defendant’s application to quash the decision of the Court of Appeal, Cape Coast, and for the Supreme Court to refer to itself the interpretation of Article 94(2)(a) of the Constitution was pending, rot to refer, issues a new writ to be put before another panel of the court.”

The beleaguered lawmaker argued that the new writ seeks to obtain what is already pending before another panel of the Supreme Court.

“This is unacceptable forum shopping, and it would set a dangerous precedent if such conduct should be countenanced by this court. The writ filed invoking the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court is simply an abuse of the process of the court. Plaintiff is not engaged in a genuine quest for an authoritative interpretation from this court of a constitutional provision. Rather, under the guise of an invocation of the original jurisdiction of this court, he is seeking reliefs that are the subject matter of the pending suits in the lower courts, as well as this court. What Plaintiff is seeking in the election petition that he instituted against the 1st Defendant is the process that this court ought to have him continue pursuing as against this new suit,” Mr Quayson added in the statement of the case dated April 12, 2022.

A resident of Assin Bereku in the Central Region, Micheal Ankomah-Ninfah, filed a petition at the Cape Coast High Court seeking to annul the declaration of Mr Gyakye Quayson as the lawmaker of Assin North.

Mr Ankomah-Ninfah had reiterated that Mr Quayson had dual citizenship while filing nominations to contest for the Assin North parliamentary seat during the 2020 polls.

This led to the 2020 parliamentary election held in the Assin North Constituency being declared null and void by the Cape Coast High Court, as it upheld that Mr Quayson breached the provisions of the constitution about dual citizenship.

An appeal to the judgment was made by Mr Quayson, at the Court of Appeal in Cape Coast, but the case was subsequently dismissed.

He sought cover from the Apex Court.

The tussle then continued to the Apex Court in a bid to have Mr Quayson prevented from carrying himself as the MP for Assin North.

Mr Ankomah -Ninfah filed a writ to invoke the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, seeking interpretation of Article 94(2)(a) of the Constitution.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, April 13, 2022, the Apex court will rule on the motion seeking to stop James Gyakye Quayson from holding himself out as the Member of Parliament for Assin North.

At the last hearing on April 5, 2022, the lawyer for Michael Ankomah-Ninfah, Frank Davis, indicated that his client has established grievous breaches of the 1992 Constitution and the other electoral laws against the disputed MP.

But Mr Tsatsu Tsikata, Lead Counsel for Mr Gyakye Quayson had raised a preliminary objection to the motion, arguing that the Supreme Court rules did not provide for such motions and that the applicant should have sought leave from the Supreme Court to allow him to bring the motion.

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