Assin North: We would vote for Gyakye Quayson even if he will be jailed for another by-election – Residents

Some residents of the Assin North Constituency are unperturbed about the possibility of the ousted Member of Parliament (MP) for the area, James Gyakye Quayson, being jailed because of his ongoing criminal trial.

In a viral video sighted by GhanaWeb, the residents stated they would vote for Gyakye Quayson regardless of the outcome of his trial.

They explained that they have come to the realisation that the only way the government would come to their aid is when there is a by-election in their constituency.

“If Gyakye Quayson would be jailed after we have voted for him, then we would vote for him for there to be another by-election.

“Because if there was no by-election, they (the government) would not be doing the things they are currently doing for us and we would not be getting the money and other things they are giving us. So we would vote for him for another by-election to take place,” one of the residents, a seamstress, who goes by Gloria, said in Twi.

Background:

The Supreme Court of Ghana, on May 17, 2023, ordered the Parliament of Ghana to expunge the name of James Gyakye Quayson as a Member of Parliament (MP)

Justice Jones Victor Dotse, Justice Nene Amegatcher, Justice Mariama Owusu, Gertrude Araba Torkornoo, Justice Prof. Henrietta Mensa-Bonsu, Justice Yonny Kulendi and Justice Barbara Ackah-Yensu declared that Quayson was not qualified at the time he contested the election 2020 in the Michael Ankomah Nimfah vrs James Gyakye Quayson case.

According to the court, the ousted Assin North MP failed to prove that he had renounced his Canadian citizenship when he filed his nomination to contest the 2020 general elections.

Parliament subsequently declared the Assin North seat vacant, leading to the Electoral Commission of Ghana announcing a by-election on May 27, 2023, to fill the seat.

But there is still one case the former MP has to face in court after the Office of the Attorney General accused him of deceiving public officers to acquire state documents.

On February 12, 2022, the State charged James Gyakye Quayson with five counts; deceit of a public officer, forgery of a passport, knowingly making a false statutory declaration, perjury, and false declaration.