Supreme Court to hear Akwatia MP’s contempt case

The Supreme Court has ruled that it will hear the case of Ernest Yaw Kumi, the embattled New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Akwatia, despite his contempt conviction by the Koforidua High Court.

Mr Kumi is before the highest court of the land with a certiorari application urging the court to quash his contempt conviction by the  High Court.

The High Court presided over by Justice Senyo Amedahe, found the MP 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.

However, before the Supreme Court could hear the certiorari application, it directed lawyers in the case to address the legal effect of granting a hearing to a contemnor, who had yet to purge himself.

By law, a contemnor has no right to a hearing by a court unless he or she has purged him or herself of the contempt, although exceptions exist.

In a 4-1 majority decision yesterday, the Supreme Court held that Mr Kumi’s case was within the remit of the exceptions and should, therefore, be heard.

On the majority side were Justices Henrietta Mensa-Bonsu, Ernest Gaewu, Henry Anthony Kwofie, and Richard Adjei-Frimpong, while Justice Gabriel Pwamang dissented.

The court said detailed reasons for the ruling would be available on March 21, this year.

The case had been adjourned to March 26, where the court is expected to hear the merits of the certiorari application by the MP.

Argument

Making his submission, counsel for the MP, Gary Nimako Marfo, argued that his client was not given a hearing at the High Court before his contempt conviction and, therefore, he must be allowed to contest the validity of his conviction at the apex court.

“This situation falls within the exception for which this honourable court ought not to shut the door of justice to the applicant and afford him a hearing,” he said. 
Justice Pwamang then asked counsel whether it was the case that he was not afforded a hearing or he was given the opportunity and he did not take advantage of it.

Counsel simply replied that his client was not given a hearing at all. 

Injunction

On January 3, 2025, the court issued an interim injunction preventing Mr Kumi’s swearing-in.

That followed a lawsuit by Henry Boakye-Yiadom, the National Democratic Congress (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 Mr Nimako, seeking to set aside the interim injunction.

Conviction

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

Specifically, Justice Amedahe issued the order after it considered that the MP defied an injunction barring him from being sworn in as a Member of Parliament (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.

Justice Amedahe noted that throughout the hearing of the contempt case, Kumi failed to appear in person before the court.

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.