The New Patriotic Party (NPP) Minority Caucus in Parliament has questioned the handling of the contempt of court application against the Member of Parliament for Akwatia, Ernest Yaw Kumi, describing the process as an abuse of judicial authority.
The NPP caucus accused the High Court judge presiding over the case, Justice Emmanuel Senyo Amedahe, of bias and judicial overreach in his handling of the matter.
The caucus, led by the MP for Weija-Gbawe, Jerry Ahmed Shaib, made the observation at a press conference outside Parliament yesterday.
The case stems from an election petition filed on December 31, 2024, by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate for Akwatia, Henry Boakye-Yiadom, challenging the election results.
Mt Boakye-Yiadom filed an ex-parte motion for an interim injunction against Mr Kumi, which was granted on January 2, 2025, without his prior knowledge, and the order was communicated to him via WhatsApp.
On January 3, 2025, Mr Kumi’s legal team, led by Gary Nimako Marfo, challenged the injunction, arguing that the High Court lacked jurisdiction to grant it.
They contended that under Article 99(1) of the 1992 Constitution and the Representation of the People Law, 1992 (PNDCL 284), an election petition can only be filed within 21 days after the publication of election results in the Ghana Gazette. At the time the injunction was granted, the results for Akwatia had not been gazetted.
Despite this, the Weija-Gbawe MP said Justice Amedahe ruled on January 6, 2025, that a press conference held by Electoral Commission official Dr Bossman Asare on December 25, 2024, announcing the gazetting of 274 parliamentary election results, was sufficient proof that Akwatia’s results had been gazetted.
However, the Minority argued that the official gazette for Akwatia was only published on January 6, 2025, contradicting the judge’s claim.
Mr Shaib further alleged that despite multiple legal actions filed by Mr Kumi, including an application for a stay of proceedings at the Supreme Court, the judge proceeded with the contempt hearing.
According to the Minority, the MP’s legal team filed for a certiorari and prohibition at the Supreme Court on January 8, 2025, seeking to quash the election petition, and halt all related proceedings, but Justice Amedahe continued hearing the case.
“Additionally, on January 24, 2025, Mr Kumi applied for the judge to recuse himself over allegations of bias, but this was ignored. His legal team also filed motions to set aside all orders arising from the petition, including the contempt case, but the judge refused to consider them before ruling on the contempt application,” Mr Shaib added.
He explained that on February 18, 2025, Mr Kumi’s lawyers sought to stop the contempt ruling by filing a motion “to arrest it”, but Justice Amedahe refused to hear their arguments.
Mr Shaib said the lawyers had not entered an appearance in the contempt case, despite their continued participation in the hearings, adding that the ruling was delivered the following day.
The Minority Caucus said it believed the judge was acting with “undue urgency” to convict Mr Kumi, raising suspicion of a deliberate attempt to remove him from Parliament.
Mr Shaib has called on civil society, legal experts, and Ghanaians to ensure that justice prevailed, warning against the use of the judiciary as a tool for partisan gains.
The Minority called for a fair judicial process free from political interference.
The lawyers have filed a notice of appeal against the ruling at the Court of Appeal and an application for a stay of execution at the High Court in Koforidua.
The Supreme Court is also expected to rule on the certiorari and prohibition application in the coming days.
BY RAISSA SAMBOU AND LAWRENCE VOMAFA AKPALU