Parliament and Supreme Court deadlocked, detrimental to Ghana’s democracy – Alan Kyerematen

Movement for Change founder and leader Alan Kyrematen has condemned the ongoing standoff between the Supreme Court and Parliament Speaker Alban Bagbin, saying it is harmful to the country’s democracy.

At a press conference on Thursday, October 31, the former trade minister, now an independent presidential candidate in the 2024 elections, said both Parliament and the Supreme Court had handled the vacancy case incorrectly.

“The current impasse between the Supreme Court and Parliament is unjustified, unjustified, unproductive and harmful to our young democracy. Both the Supreme Court and Parliament must respect the Constitution and laws of Ghana. This impasse represents grandstanding on the part of both institutions.”

He described the Supreme Court’s decision to grant the application of Alexander Afenyo-Markin as unconstitutional, saying: “The Supreme Court in its ruling on the application of the leader of the NPP faction in Parliament, Hon. Alexandra Afenyo-Markina to overturn the order of the Speaker of Parliament regarding the status of four Members of Parliament was and remains, in my considered and respectful opinion, unconstitutional and may amount to an abuse of power. The Supreme Court in accordance with Article 130 (1) interprets the provisions of the Constitution.”

As for Parliament, Mr Kyeremathen said if the Speaker rejected the decision of the Supreme Court, it would be a violation of the law as Article 133 (1) of the Constitution of Ghana obliges all private persons and public institutions to obey the Supreme Court.

“Parliament will be breaking the law if it refuses to accept the Supreme Court’s decision. Even if Parliament believes that the decision of the Supreme Court is wrong, it must obey the orders of the court and take the judicial route to resolve the issue.”

He further said that the Speaker took the right step by approaching the Supreme Court to overturn the original decision regarding the vacancies. “Parliament, although belatedly, took the right step by filing an application for review of the Supreme Court decision. However, in my considered and respectful opinion, the course of action and related remedies approved in the Act of Parliament are meritorious and lack legal justification. It is an undermining of the rule of law and an abuse of the judicial process to say that a Supreme Court decision cannot influence an out-of-court ruling by Parliament.”

Speaking about the law, he noted that Speaker Alban Bagbin did nothing wrong by declaring the seats vacant. “The Speaker of Parliament is right to declare the four seats vacant and order that the minority faction in Parliament be considered the majority faction. However, this order can be passed by the Speaker of Parliament only if and only when the Supreme Court rules in favor of Parliament in deciding a significant case pending before it.”

Kyerematen then called on the various stakeholders involved in the issue to resolve it before the December 7 general elections.

“With just four weeks left until the general elections, it is imperative that all parties – namely the judiciary, the legislature, the executive and the citizens of Ghana – work to resolve this sensitive issue to ensure a peaceful path to 2024. general elections in December.”

The Supreme Court adjourned the hearing to November 11, 2024.

Below is Mr Alan Kyerematen’s full press statement:

MEDIA STATEMENT BY ALAN KIEREMATHEN, FOUNDER AND LEADER OF THE MOVEMENT FOR CHANGE (M4C) AND PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE OF THE ALLIANCE FOR REVOLUTIONARY CHANGE (ARC) ON THURSDAY OCTOBER 31, 2024

THE SUPREME COURT AND PARLIAMENT OF GHANA MUST RESPECT THE LAW AND WORK WITHIN ITS FRAMEWORK.

Media representatives,

Good morning,

I address you this morning not only as a lawyer, but also as a leading politician in Ghana and a presidential candidate in the December 2024 general elections.

The current impasse between the Supreme Court and Parliament is unjustified, unjustified, unproductive and harmful to our young democracy. Both the Supreme Court and Parliament must respect the Constitution and laws of Ghana. The current impasse represents grandstanding on the part of both institutions.

The concept of separation of powers and checks and balances between different branches of government are two sides of the same coin and logically reinforce each other. This should provide context for the resolution of the dispute between the Supreme Court and Parliament.

1. Supreme Court case

I. The Supreme Court in its ruling on the application of the leader of the NPP faction in Parliament, Hon. Alexandra Afenyo-Markin’s decision to overturn the resolution of the Speaker of Parliament on the status of four members of parliament was and remains, in my considered and respectful opinion, unconstitutional and can be regarded as an abuse of the powers of the Supreme Court. under Article 130(1) to interpret the provisions of the Constitution.

The Constitution of Ghana rightly entrusts the Supreme Court with the responsibility for interpreting the provisions of the Constitution. In this regard, the Supreme Court has both original and final jurisdiction to interpret the Constitution.

Any application made to the Court for the purpose of interpreting any provision of the Constitution, to the extent the application is made in accordance with the processes and procedures of the Supreme Court, will be deemed to have been duly made in the Supreme Court.

ii. Against this backdrop, I take a contrary view to the position taken by the honorable retired Supreme Court Judge, Justice Atuguba, that the Supreme Court should have relinquished jurisdiction on the matter. The Supreme Court was right to hear the application because it was a request for interpretation of the Constitution.

iii. It cannot be said that Article 97(1)(g) and (h) of the Constitution is devoid of clarity and therefore untestable as interpreted by the Supreme Court. The said provisions are very clear in both letter and spirit, and unconditionally impose on the Speaker of Parliament the duty to declare vacant the seat of any sitting Member of Parliament who decides to change his status in Parliament, either by declaring himself independent or due to loss of membership in parties that initially sponsored their entry into parliament.

For the avoidance of doubt, Article 97(1)(g) and (h) reads as follows:

Article “97. (1) “A Member of Parliament shall vacate his seat in Parliament—

(g) 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….

(h) if he has been elected as a Member of Parliament as an independent candidate and has joined a political party.”

iv. It is clear from the mandatory language of the provision referred to above, as well as from the Common Law Rules of Interpretation, that there is no issue of interpretation requiring the Supreme Court to exercise its discretion. The power of the Supreme Court to interpret the provisions of the Constitution should not be exercised arbitrarily, especially in very sensitive situations, which could undermine the rule of law and impede the principle of separation of powers.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Indeed, unless there is a problem of interpretation, the Supreme Court’s position on the issue at issue raises serious questions about whether the Court is interfering with the work of Parliament.

2. The case regarding parliament

I. Subject to the requirements of the rule of law and Article 133(1) of the Constitution of Ghana, any decision of the Supreme Court can only be reviewed and modified by the Supreme Court itself. In this regard, individuals, judicial and non-judicial bodies, including independent constitutional bodies (ICBs), as well as the various branches of government, are unconditionally bound by the decisions of the Supreme Court.

ii. In cases where any party falling into the above categories is dissatisfied with the decisions of the Supreme Court, the only recourse available to such party is to approach the Supreme Court for a review of its decision.

iii. In light of the above, Parliament will be in breach of the Law if it refuses to accept the decision of the Supreme Court.

Even if Parliament believes that the decision of the Supreme Court is wrong, it must obey the court’s orders and take the judicial route to resolve the issue.

iv. Against this backdrop, Parliament took the right step, albeit belatedly, by filing an application for review of the Supreme Court’s decision. However, in my considered and respectful opinion, the course of action and associated remedies approved by Parliament’s application are unfounded and have no legal basis. It is an undermining of the rule of law and an abuse of the judicial process to say that a Supreme Court decision cannot influence an out-of-court ruling by Parliament.

v. For the avoidance of doubt, all individuals, legal entities, judicial and non-judicial bodies, independent constitutional bodies and various branches of government are bound Stricto Senso by the decisions of the Supreme Court. As stated earlier, any aggrieved persons or organizations mentioned above can only approach the same Supreme Court to review its decisions. Parliament’s claim that it is the “master of its own rules” has no legal force and is intended to undermine the very spirit behind the concept of checks and balances between the various branches of government.

In light of the above, the Speaker of Parliament has the right to declare four seats vacant and issue a corresponding order that the minority faction in Parliament shall be considered the majority faction in Parliament.

However, this order can only be issued by the Speaker of Parliament if and only if the Supreme Court rules in favor of Parliament in deciding a significant case currently before it.

Ladies and gentlemen,
With just four weeks to go until the general elections, it is imperative that all parties i.e. the judiciary, the legislature, the executive and the citizens of Ghana work to resolve this sensitive issue to ensure a peaceful path to 2024. General elections in December.

Thank you for your attention.

God bless our Motherland Ghana and make our nation great and strong!

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