Former Supreme Court judge, Justice William Atuguba, has said the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, is bound by the Supreme Court’s recent ruling, which overturned his [Mr Bagbin’s] decision to declare four parliamentary seats vacant.
His remark comes after the apex court ruled that the Speaker’s declaration was unconstitutional.
Commenting on the development, Justice Atuguba noted that, following the Supreme Court’s decision, the four affected legislators are entitled to return to the House and participate in proceedings.
“In the face of this decision, he [Mr Bagbin] is bound by the decision of the Supreme Court,” he said in an interview with JoyNews.
According to him, compliance with the Supreme Court’s ruling is mandatory, warning that failure to adhere could lead to contempt charges.
He highlighted that such contempt is a serious offence, carrying a potential prison sentence of up to 10 years without the option of a fine.
“It is not necessarily 10 years, you must just suffer a term of imprisonment not exceeding 10 years. Not only that, 10 years disqualification of holding public office and if you are a president, you are liable to removal,” he said.
Chief Justice Torkornoo assured that a detailed explanation of the ruling will be provided on Wednesday, November 13, 2024.
The defendant, Mr. Bagbin, and his lawyer, Thaddeus Sory, failed to appear in the Supreme Court today.
Again, Mr Bagbin’s counsel had not filed their legal processes as ordered by the court from the previous sitting.
The legal case was brought before the court by Alexander Afenyo-Markin, the leader of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary caucus who is seeking an interpretation from the court that Article 97(1) (g) and (h) only applies to a current term of Parliament, and therefore the move by the Speaker to declare the seats of the four MPs vacant is unconstitutional.
Article 97(1)(g) of the Constitution states: “A member of Parliament shall vacate his seat if he leaves the party of which he was a member at the time of his election to Parliament to join another party or seeks to remain in Parliament as an independent member.”
Speaker of Parliament, Mr Bagbin, declared the seats vacant based on this provision.