As part of his attempts to improve relations between the Parliament and the media, the Speaker made this statement while visiting the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL) office in Accra to meet with management and the editorial team.
James Gyakye Quayson, the incoming member of parliament for Assin North, was subjected to a daily trial by the High Court, and Mr. Bagbin commented that it was unfair for the court to do so in light of the state’s accusations of perjury and forgery.
In light of the fact that no other case had been handled in this way, he claimed that the ruling appeared selective.
“What we are doing is rule by law, not rule of law, and I think that we should move away from that. For democracy to succeed, the pillar is the rule of law. I tell them, and I tell the judges, it is not right. If it is done to everybody, I have no problem, but if it is done selectively, I have a problem,” Mr Bagbin said.
He added that “the law is no respecter of any person; that is one of the errors in our constitution. Read through our constitution and you’ll see the law is a respecter of so many people. So many people in Ghana are above the law. You can’t have democracy [with that], and so we need to work at it seriously.”
In order to support calls for a constitutional revision, the speaker urged the audience, emphasising that “it is something we must take up.”
James Gyakye Quayson’s trial will begin being heard every day on July 4, 2023, according to a decision made by the Accra High Court, which is presided over by Justice Mary Yanzuh.
The court determined that there was no basis for reviewing its order from June 16 announcing this arrangement.
Many people, including the MP-elect’s legal team, objected to the judgement.
The court insisted that adjournments were made at the judge’s discretion and not for the parties’ benefit. This court’s decision was unequivocally legal. There was no proof that the directive broke the law anywhere.
“The court did not breach his rights by refusing to grant him campaign time. The judge said that a simple refusal by the court does not entail a denial of the right to a fair trial.
After being accused by the Attorney-General’s Office, Mr. Quayson is currently being tried for forgery and perjury.
He is also accused of misleading a public official and making a fraudulent declaration when he submitted his name for the 2020 election even though he had not relinquished his Canadian citizenship.
