James Gyakye Quayson: Assin North MP-elect to be sworn in today

The Member of Parliament-elect for Assin North, James Gyakye Quayson is expected to be sworn into office today Tuesday, July 4, 2023, by the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin.

This comes after his resounding victory in last week’s by-election.

The by-election was necessitated by a ruling by the Supreme Court that ordered Parliament to expunge his name from its records as an MP.

Despite facing a criminal trial over the dual citizenship allegations that led to the loss of his seat, Mr Quayson secured a wider margin of victory with 17,245 votes, representing 57.56% of valid votes.

The NPP’s Charles Opoku received 12,630 votes or 42.15% of valid votes to secure the second position, while Bernice Enam Sefanu of the Liberal Party of Ghana obtained only 87 votes or 0.29%.

With a turnout of 74.23%, officials of the Electoral Commission noted that the voter turnout was very high.

Currently, Mr Quayson is facing charges of forgery and perjury after being charged by the Attorney-General’s Office. He is accused of deceiving a public officer and making false declarations when filing nominations for the 2020 election, as he had not renounced his Canadian citizenship at the time.

However, Mr Quayson has filed a motion on notice at the High Court requesting a stay of proceedings pending the outcome of an appeal. He is seeking an order to halt the ongoing trial until the appeal, filed on June 27, 2023, is determined.