Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin faces a critical decision on Tuesday, October 22, 2024, as he must decide whether to uphold his October 17 ruling that declared four parliamentary seats vacant or comply with the Supreme Court’s directive to put the decision on hold.
This controversy traces back to the 2020 general election, where both the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) secured 137 seats each, leading to a deeply divided Parliament. The NPP gained a slim majority by aligning with Andrew Asiamah, an independent MP who had been dismissed from the party, while the NDC’s election of Bagbin as Speaker was itself a chaotic event.
The current issue centers on four MPs—Peter Kwakye Ackah (Amenfi Central), Kwadwo Asante (Suhum), Cynthia Morrison (Agona West), and Andrew Asiamah (Fomena)—who have filed to contest the 2024 election as independent candidates. According to Article 97(1)(g) of the 1992 Constitution, MPs who leave their party to contest as independents are required to vacate their seats. Speaker Bagbin relied on this constitutional provision to declare their seats vacant.
However, the NPP, led by Alexander Afenyo-Markin, argued that the matter was already before the Supreme Court and that the Speaker should have awaited the Court’s ruling. After Bagbin declared the vacancies on October 17, the NPP quickly sought and obtained a stay of execution from the Supreme Court on October 18, which ruled that the Speaker’s decision should be frozen pending further legal review.
The NDC caucus has since asserted that it will respect only the Speaker’s authority, viewing the four vacant seats as bolstering its parliamentary majority. This dispute highlights ongoing tensions between the two major parties and raises important questions about the balance of power between the Legislature and Judiciary.
Speaker Bagbin’s decision on Tuesday will likely shape the course of parliamentary proceedings and Ghana’s political landscape. Whether he chooses to stand by his initial ruling or comply with the Supreme Court’s directive will reveal much about how these constitutional tensions will be resolved.
