Tensions In Parliament As Majority Blocks Convicted NPP MP From Contributing

• The majority in Parliament blocked MP for Akwatia Ernest Yaw Kumi from making a statement on the floor of Parliament
• The caucus insisted that a convict cannot be allowed to deliver a statement during a session of Parliament
• The court had earlier restrained Kumi from presenting himself for swearing-in, pending the resolution of a legal dispute

The majority in Parliament blocked MP for Akwatia Ernest Yaw Kumi from making a statement in Parliament.

The caucus insists that a convict and someone a bench warrant has been issued against cannot be allowed to deliver a statement.

This is after the high court in Koforidua convicted Kumi of contempt of court after he ignored the injunction barring him from being sworn in as a legislator in the current Parliament.

The court had earlier restrained the MP from presenting himself for swearing-in, pending the legal dispute resolution.

Citing evidence of willful defiance, the court ruled that the lawmaker had acted in contempt.

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Attempts by the Minority Caucus in Parliament to justify his absence from the hearing through an official letter were dismissed.

The injunction order was granted on January 2, 2025, following a petition filed by Henry Boakye-Yiadom, the National Democratic Congress parliamentary candidate in Akwatia, which was in line with the Representation of the People Act, 1992 (PNDC Law 284). Other areas like Nsawam suffered similar legal contentions.

Boakye-Yiadom is claiming electoral infractions that saw Kumi win the parliamentary election with 19,269 votes to his 17,206 votes.

The declaration was made at the National Police Training School in Tesano, Accra, after multiple failed attempts to finalise the results in the Eastern Region.

The beginning of the ninth Parliament

YEN.com.gh reported that the acting Clerk to Parliament, Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror, chaired the first sitting of the Ninth Parliament on Tuesday, January 7.

There are 274 out of 276 constituencies that were submitted to Parliament as having duly elected candidates for Parliament.

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Akwatia MP Ernest Kumi convicted over contempt of court, judge issues arrest warrant

Ablekuma North and Akwatia were the two seats with issues with the eligibility of their candidates. Djietror served Kumi with a warning and injunction during the proceedings.

The ninth Parliament has the NDC with a commanding majority of 183 seats, while the NPP has 88 seats.

Source: YEN.com.gh