Kwaku Azar Says Alban Bagbin Has Created Dangerous Precedent By Vacating Four Parliamentary Seats

• Legal Expert Professor Stephen Kwaku Asare has disagreed with the Speaker of Parliament's decision to vacate four parliamentary seats
• He said the decision has left four constituencies immediately orphaned at such a crucial time in the country's politics
• He said the ruling also undermines the purpose and intent of Article 97(1)(g) and infringes the affected MPs' rights to association

Legal Expert Professor Stephen Kwaku Asare has raised concerns about Alban Bagbin’s recent decision to vacate four parliamentary seats.

In a Facebook post, Kwaku Azar said the ruling sets a dangerous precedent in Ghana’s parliament and could be used to stifle parliamentarians as they plan their political futures.

He argued that Alban Bagbin had misapplied the provision of Article 97(1)(g) of the 1992 constitution and misinterpreted what the law was intended to achieve.

According to Kwaku Azar, MPs merely deciding to contest as independent candidates does not imply that they have severed ties or allegiance with their current parties.

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“Until an MP officially changes affiliation or resigns, their role and loyalty within Parliament remain unchanged, irrespective of any nomination they may file for a future electoral cycle.

Thus, “To interpret a future nomination as severance of present ties would be a misapplication of the law, confusing future plans with actions that have not yet been realized.”

Kwaku Azar also stressed that Article 97(1)(g) and (h) of the constitution were set up to maintain the numerical composition of the house as the voters had intended.

He explained that there was ample precedent for having informed the Speaker’s decision in a different direction, but clearly, Alban Bagbin had ignored all that precedent.

He said with this dangerous precedence created, parliamentarians who may want to plan their political futures would be unable to do so without fear of immediate consequences.

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He also argued the ruling infringes the fundamental right to freedom of association and could undermine political pluralism and other key democratic principles.

He also said leaving those four constituencies without parliamentary representation was totally unnecessary.

NPP to boycott parliament business

YEN.com.gh reported that the New Patriotic Party's leader in parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has accused the Speaker of being biased.

He claimed that Alban Bagbin's decision to order four MPs to vacate their seats was improper and must be reversed.

Meanwhile, the National Democratic Congress' Dr Cassiel Ato Forson has embraced the changes in parliament.

Source: YEN.com.gh