A Governance Expert Professor Enoch Antwi has said that the action taken by Parliament against the consideration of the new ministers as well as the decision of the president not to sign the anti-gay bill until the Supreme Court is done with the case against the bill should all be done in the interest of Ghanaians.
He says that Ghanaians want the bill to be passed into law. Therefore, the President should sign it. Equally, he added, the people expect governance to go on therefore Parliament must approve the new ministers.
“All these should be done and done in the interest of Ghanaians. Ghanaians want the president to sign the bill into law because that is their values.
“In the same way we expect parliament to approve these ministers to work, as we speak now, they are not working and that’s affecting governance,” Prof Antwi said on the Key Points while contributing to a discussion on the dismissal of the suit filed by South Dayi lawmaker Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor against considering the new ministers.
On Wednesday, March 27 the Supreme Court dismissed an injunction application filed by Dafeamekpor against Parliament’s approval of ministerial nominees by President Akufo-Addo.
By a unanimous decision, the apex Court said the injunction application is frivolous and an abuse of the court process. Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor had filed an injunction restraining Parliament from vetting and approving new ministers as well as reshuffled ministers given various portfolios. He was praying the court to deem the action by President Akufo-Addo as unconstitutional.
President Akufo-Addo on February 14, 2024 had announced a reshuffle consisting of 13 ministers and 10 deputy ministers being relieved of their post, while 6 of them were reassigned into various portfolios.
On Wednesday, March 27, 2024, when the case was called, the South Dayi Member of Parliament as well as his lawyer, Nii Kpakpo Samoa Addo were both absent.
Events took an interesting twist when the five-member panel chaired by the Chief Justice, Gertrude Torkornoo stood down the hearing for about 10 minutes to ascertain the details of documents submitted by the court bailiff.
The bailiff had indicated that in his quest to serve court processes to the Speaker of Parliament (1st defendant) and Rockson Nelson Dafeamekpor (Plaintiff) the latter had refused service.
Joshua Benning narrated to the court that a hearing notice and affidavit in opposition documents which were sent to the law firm of representatives of Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor were rejected because “an order had been made by the lawyer Nii Kpakpo Samoa Addo not to receive any service”
The Chief Justice then ordered for the hearing of the case to progress after the bailiff confirmed that the Speaker of Parliament had duly been served and he had also left the court documents at the premises of the plaintiff’s law firm.
Responding to the suit, Thaddeus Sory, counsel for the Speaker of Parliament also opposed to the injunction application citing that it did not satisfy the requirements for an injunction to be granted.
Ruling on the matter, the apex court dismissed the injunction application by Rockson Nelson Dafeamekpor with the reason that the suit was against minister nominees whose names have not been submitted.
“It is really for me, a gross professional misconduct. Be that as it may, the court proceeded to deal with the matter and that is it. I think it was very unfortunate especially as the same counsel was in the same day filing processes in the Supreme Court of Ghana earlier in the morning It was rejected the processes from the Supreme Court of Ghana and in the afternoon, he proceeded to file processes in the same Supreme Court of Ghana.
“I think the processes of the highest court of the Republic ought to be respected, and the dignity and authority of the court always ought to be protected and respected by all counsels.”
By Laud Nartey
