Former New Patriotic Party (NPP) Chairman, Freddie Blay, has advised Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin to refer the contentious issue of declaring four parliamentary seats vacant to the Supreme Court for interpretation.
His comments come in response to the ongoing controversy surrounding Speaker Bagbin’s ruling, which declared the seats of four MPs vacant after they chose to run as independent candidates or switched party affiliations ahead of the 2024 elections.
In an interview on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen programme Friday, Mr Blay backed the Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin’s decision to take the matter to the Supreme Court.
He argued that, the interpretation of the constitutional provisions at the center of the dispute requires broader judicial clarity.
“If I were in the Speaker’s position, I would have said this is a nuanced interpretation of the constitution that needs further clarity. We operate under a constitutional democracy, not just parliamentary democracy, and for that reason, the issue is so complex that it warrants interpretation by the courts,” he stated.
He added that, while the Speaker can rule on parliamentary matters during sessions, issues of constitutional interpretation should be left to the courts to avoid potential overreach.
“It makes absolute sense for the court to interpret the article in question,” he said.
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