Interior Minister explains attempted arrest of Akwatia MP

The Minister of the Interior, Alhaji Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka, has revealed that the attempted arrest of New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Akwatia in the Eastern Region, Ernest Kumi, was intended to enforce a bench warrant issued by the High Court for contempt.

The warrant, dated February 19, 2025, was served at the National Investigations Bureau's (NIB) Eastern Regional Office through the National Security Coordinator.

The Interior Minister gave the explanation when he responded to an urgent question by the Majority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, on the floor of the House last Tuesday.

Mr Afenyo-Markin, also the NPP MP for Effutu in the Central Region, inquired about the circumstances surrounding the attempted arrest of the Akwatia MP by 10 operatives of the NIB in three official pickup vehicles on Friday, March 7, 2025 in Akwatia.

Response

As a result, the Interior Minister, who is also the National Democratic Congress (NDC) MP for Asawase in the Ashanti Region, said the attempted arrest was merely an effort to carry out the High Court's orders.

"Mr Speaker, the Koforidua High Court on February 19 issued a Bench Warrant for the arrest of Ernest Yaw Kumi, the Member of Parliament for the Akwatia Constituency.”

"The warrant was served at the NIB's Eastern Regional Office through the National Security Coordinator. The circumstances surrounding the attempted arrest of the Member of Parliament by the officers of the NIB was therefore to carry out the orders of the High Court per the warrant dated February 19, 2025, for committal for contempt," he said.

The attempted arrest was met with resistance from supporters of the NPP at Akwatia in the Eastern Region.

Background

On January 3, 2025, the Koforidua High Court, presided over by Justice Senyo Amedahe, found Mr Kumi guilty of contempt after he allegedly disregarded an injunction order for him not to be sworn in as an MP, pending the determination of a petition challenging his election.

That followed a lawsuit by Henry Boakye-Yiadom, the NDC parliamentary candidate for the Akwatia Constituency and former MP, against the Electoral Commission (EC), Kumi, and the Clerk to Parliament.

The lawsuit challenged the election results that declared Mr Kumi the winner with 19,269 votes against Boakye-Yiadom’s 17,206 votes.

Despite the injunction, Kumi proceeded to be sworn in on January 7, 2025.

In an earlier ruling in January, the court dismissed an application by Kumi’s legal team, led by Gary Nimako Marfo, seeking to set aside the interim injunction.

In February this year, the court issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Mr Kumi, after finding him guilty of contempt.

The court issued the order after it considered that the MP defied an injunction barring him from being sworn in as MP on January 7, 2025.

The judge explained that Kumi had been absent from court since the contempt proceedings began, prompting the issuance of the warrant for his arrest.

The court also rejected a letter from the Minority Caucus of Parliament, which claimed that the MP was occupied with parliamentary duties and, therefore, unable to attend court.