The military may have to be sent to Parliament – Martin Kpebu on Supreme Court ruling

Private legal practitioner, Martin Kpebu has criticised the Supreme Court in terms of how they deliver their mandate to serve justice to the Ghanaian citizenry in recent times.

He indicated that the court’s ruling to suspend the decision of the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin to declare four seats vacant within a short period after being petitioned by the NPP MPs raises concerns about its credibility.

The outspoken legal practitioner noted that the Supreme Court’s actions would make people believe that is more political than being fair in their rulings.

Speaking on Key Points aired on TV3, Kpebu advised that it would be prudent for military personnel to be deployed in parliament on Tuesday, October 22, 2024, to beef up security to prevent any chaotic situation following the ruling.

“The Supreme Court is giving people reason to believe that it is now a political organization. The military may have to be sent to parliament on Tuesday,” he said.

On Friday, October 18, 2024, the Supreme Court issued a stay of execution on Speaker Alban Bagbin's ruling, which declared four parliamentary seats vacant.

Parliament has thus been directed to recognize and allow the affected MPs Cynthia Morrison (Agona West), Kwadjo Asante (Suhum), Peter Kwakye Ackah (Amenfi Central), and Andrew Asiamah (Fomena) to fully represent their constituencies and carry out their official duties.

The directive remains in effect, not for the 10 days initially requested by the applicants, but until the Supreme Court delivers its final ruling on the case.

The application to stay the Speaker's decision was filed by New Patriotic Party (NPP) Members of Parliament, who sought the Court's intervention to halt the enforcement of the ruling that would have affected three of their colleagues and one from the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

The application was filed ex parte, meaning that neither Speaker Bagbin nor Parliament was joined to the case.

View the tweet below:

“The Supreme Court is giving people reason to believe that it’s now a political organization” - Lawyer Martin Kpebu #TheKeyPoints #TV3GH pic.twitter.com/pPr9ZZyLwO

— #TV3GH (@tv3_ghana) October 19, 2024