Why Speaker Bagbin wanted Justice Gaewu to step down from Parliamentary vacant seats case

Lawyer for the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin on Wednesday morning argued that Supreme Court Judge, Justice Ernest Yao Gaewu should recuse himself from the case on the declaration of four Parliamentary seats vacant.

The Majority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin has raised issues with the Constitutional provision on when a parliamentary seat can be declared vacant based on which the Speaker of Parliament has declared four seats in the current Parliament vacant. 

The case is pending and it came up for hearing on Wednesday, October 30.

The Speaker of Parliament's lawyer, Thaddeus Sory argued in court that Justice Ernest Yao Gaewu should not preside over the case because he previously contested a parliamentary election on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Volta Region.

However, the court overruled that objection.

In overruling the objection, the five-member panel, presided over by the Chief Justice, Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, held that recusing a judge on such ground will not advance the administration of justice.

Currently, the court said there was a judge who is a former sitting Member of Parliament, while another one is former General Secretary of the People's National Convention (PNC).

Again, the court held that the current matter was a subject of constitutional dispute and not that of political parties.

Read also: Supreme Court overrules objection on Justice Gaewu sitting on vacant MPs seat case