‘Gyakye Quayson will go to prison’ comment – KT Hammond hauled before court for contempt

Member of Parliament for Assin North, James Gyakye Quayson, has taken legal action against Minister of Trade and Industry, Kobina Tahir Hammond popularly known as K.T. Hammond, who also serves as the Member of Parliament for the Adansi Asokwa Constituency.

James Quayson has, through his lawyer, filed a lawsuit citing K.T. Hammond for contempt in relation to alleged comments he made on Oyerepa TV regarding the former’s ongoing criminal trial at the High Court.

The writ states that the Trade and Industry Minister has stated in the said interview that, ‘Gyakye Quayson will go to prison’, which was subsequently published on GhanaWeb.

Quoting Article 19(1) of the 1992 Constitution, the writ contends that until proven guilty, an individual is considered innocent, therefore, K.T Hammond’s comment is a violation of the accused’s right to a fair trial, and it is argued that his words impede the proper functioning of the court, hence the suit seeking legal consequences, including imprisonment, if he is found guilty of contempt.

Gyakye Quayson is currently facing charges of perjury and forgery related to his Canadian citizenship status at the time of filing his nomination forms for the 2020 parliamentary election.

The legal proceedings against Gyakye Quayson arose following a Supreme Court ruling that deemed the Electoral Commission’s decision to allow him to contest the 2020 polls without proof of renouncing his Canadian citizenship unconstitutional.

The apex court instructed Parliament to expunge Gyakye Quayson’s name from its records, nullifying his election and declaring it to be of no effect. Furthermore, his swearing-in was deemed unconstitutional.

The Electoral Commission of Ghana has officially declared James Gyakye Quayson as the Member of Parliament after he won a by-election occasioned by his removal.

According to the Electoral Commission’s announcement, James Gyakye Quayson garnered a total of 17,245 votes, representing 57.56% of the total votes cast. His closest contender, Charles Opoku of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), received 12,630 votes, accounting for 42.15% of the votes. Bernice Enyonam Sefenu of the Liberal Party Ghana (LPG) secured 87 votes, which represented 0.29% of the overall tally.