Minister to influence Assin North by-election with road repairs

Like the Kumawu constituency in the Ashanti Region, which saw deplorable roads suddenly being repaired due to the by-election, roads in the Assin area of the Central Region are about to see major upgrades due to a by-election.

Yesterday, May 30, 2023, Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin got the Assin North seat declared vacant following the Supreme Court’s order to the House to expunge the name of the Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency, James Gyakye Quayson of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), from its records.

But ahead of the Speaker’s order, the Roads and Highways Minister, Kwasi Amoako-Attah, who led the repair works in Kumawu, was already in the Assin area inspecting road projects there, suggesting a similar strategy was going to be used to get the constituents to vote for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary candidate.

On Tuesday, May 30 2023, the Minister of Roads and Highways paid a working visit to the Central Region to inspect the progress of work on some ongoing road projects.

The Ministry reports that “as part of his visit, the Minister inspected the 31.2km Assin Foso to Assin Praso road project, which is completed and ready for commissioning”.

Already, a video has emerged of some construction equipment said to belong to “Maripoma”, with the man who did the amateur video saying they were on their way to the Assin North the same way the company deplored its equipment to Kumawu.

Interestingly, while in the Central Region, residents of Teshie in Accra were issuing a two-month ultimatum to the government, demanding the rehabilitation of all deplorable inner roads within their community.

According to the residents, the deteriorating roads at Greda Estates, Tsuibleoo, Teshie Lascala, and other areas are severely impacting their daily commute, necessitating urgent action.

The residents have already submitted a petition to the Chief Priest of Teshie, Numoo Badu Odaan Odiapense I, highlighting the poor state of their roads.

Additionally, they have submitted a similar petition to the Municipal Chief Executive for Ledzokuku, Mordecai Quarshie. Frustrated with the lack of progress, they have expressed their intent to organize another protest if their roads are not rehabilitated within the next two months.

In their quest for improved roads, the residents took to the streets on Tuesday, May 30, 2023, demanding their fair share of development resources.

Citi News’ Kennedy Twumasi visited various communities in Teshie and witnessed firsthand the deplorable condition of the roads, which poses significant challenges to both motorists and pedestrians.

In response to the residents’ demands, the Ledzokuku Municipal Assembly has announced the immediate commencement of rehabilitation works on several inner roads in Teshie.

The assembly has committed to rehabilitating roads in Tsuibleoo, the LEKMA to Adjorman roundabout, Fertilizer Road, and King Kortey Road as soon as possible.

Furthermore, the assembly has pledged to address the poor conditions of the inner roads in Greda Estates, Teshie Lascala, and the entire Coffee Street at Teshie once the initial rehabilitation projects are completed.

The vacancy announcement was disclosed in a letter the Clerk of the House wrote to the Electoral Commission of Ghana (EC).

“In the exercise of the power conferred and the duty imposed on the Clerk to Parliament by section 3 of the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana (Amendment) Act, 1996 (Act 527), L. CYRIL KWABENA OTENG NSIAH, Clerk to Parliament do hereby formally notify you of the occurrence of a vacancy in the Assin North Constituency necessitated by the Judgement of the Supreme Court dated May 17, 2023, vide Writ No. J1/11/2022 issued in respect of James Gyakye Quayson in the case of Michael Ankomah Nimfah vs James Gvakve Quayson.

“The Electoral Commission of Ghana and The Attorney-General and request you to take appropriate consequential action as required by law,” parts of the letter.

A seven-member panel of the Supreme Court ordered Parliament to expunge the name of James Gyakye Quayson as a Member of Parliament.

In the ruling, the apex court barred Mr. Quayson from holding himself as a Member of Parliament, citinewsroom.com reports.

Mr. Quayson was standing trial for counts of deceit of a public officer, forgery of a passport, knowingly making a false statutory declaration, perjury, and false declaration.

Justice Jones Victor Dotse, Justice Nene Amegatcher, Justice Mariama Owusu, Gertrude Araba Torkornoo, Justice Prof. Henrietta Mensa-Bonsu, Justice Yonny Kulendi and Justice Barbara Ackah-Yensu declared that Mr Quayson was not qualified at the time he contested the election 2020.

The state had, on February 12, 2022, charged James Gyakye Quayson with five counts being; deceit of a public officer, forgery of a passport, knowingly making a false statutory declaration, perjury, and false declaration.

As the trial continued in July 2022, his lawyers, led by Lawyer Tsatsu Tsikata, questioned the competency of the Prosecution’s First Witness, Richard Takyi-Mensah, a teacher and his subsequent tendering of his witness statements.

But, his objection was overruled by the trial Judge Justice Mary Maame Ekue Yanzu, on the grounds that the witness was competent and duly admitted the witness statements and paragraphs.

Dissatisfied with the High Court’s ruling, Mr. Quayson and his lawyers filed a motion at the Supreme Court seeking to quash the trial judge's decision and order of Prohibition against the judge.

You can also watch the latest episode of People & Places on GhanaWeb TV: