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Supreme Court to hear case for
Abodakpi's removal from Parliament
Accra, July 16, Ghanadot/GNA - The Supreme Court will on
July 23 commence hearing a case in which a legal
practitioner, Mr. Kwasi Danso-Acheampong is seeking the
removal of Daniel Abodakpi, Member of Parliament (MP) for
Keta, from the House.
The Court earlier fixed Wednesday for the hearing but when
the case was called, the Attorney-General's office had not
filed its submissions.
Initially the A-G's office was not a party to the case but
the court requested that it should be included in the
matter.
Mr Joe Ghartey, the Attorney General, who led the team of
attorneys, told the court that he had not been able to file
his submissions.
He, however, promised to file them by Thursday, July 17.
The court therefore granted the AG leave to file his
submissions to enable Abodakpi and Mr Danso Acheampong to
respond.
This, however, should be done by July 22, the court said.
Mr Danso-Acheampong contends that Mr Abodakpi mandatorily
vacated his seat as MP for Keta Constituency on February 5,
last year when he was convicted by the Fast Track High court
to a 10-year jail term for causing financial loss to the
state and defrauding by false pretences.
President John Agyekum Kufuor granted Mr Abodakpi amnesty by
forging him the rest of his sentence.
He was therefore seeking the Supreme Court's interpretation
of section 10 of the Representation of the People Law 1992,
Law 284, to have Mr Abodakpi removed from Parliament on the
charges of defrauding by false pretences, which had been
confirmed by the Court of Appeal.
He is also seeking the interpretation of Article 97 of the
Constitution on the legibility of an MP and the Article 94,
which spells out that convicts cannot be in Parliament.
Mr Tony Lithur represented Abodakpi.
The court of Appeal in a 2-1 decision upheld the judgment of
the Fast Track High Court, which convicted Abodakpi to a
10-year jail term. He has served notice that he will appeal
the decision at the Supreme Court.
GNA
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