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Forget It, We Won’t Set Foot In Any Court – Minority Calls Police’s Bluff
Minority Members of Parliament have noted that they’ll not be adhering to a Police summon served them to appear before the Accra Magistrate Court on Monday, January 4, 2020.
This comes after the Police accused them of failing to secure a permit from the police before walking to the headquarters of the Electoral Commission on December 22, 2020, to present a petition.
Also, unlawfully gathering and conducting themselves in a manner which created fear and panic in the Ridge neighbourhood.
Reacting to the charges, MP for Kumbungu Constituency, Ras Mubarak noted that the failure of the Police to inform the Speaker of their summon makes it illegal in the first place.
“In any case, Parliament is sitting tomorrow (Monday) at 10am. And they of all people should know better that when Parliament is sitting, unless the speaker explicitly releases any MP, no one can summon them to any court. This is according to Article 117 of the 1992 Constitution. So, this is an illegality. They should follow the Constitution. They should contact the Speaker to inform him of what they want to do, the Speaker will give directions, invite the parties, and discuss it before any such summons can be served on MPs. But you don’t send these things to MPs and leak it to the media and expect that any MP will take you seriously. They are taking us into the abyss,” he told Joy News.
“Personally, I will not be in court. Because the proper thing has not been done. I get the indication that is the position of my colleagues too. I have not seen any letter from the Speaker’s office permitting them to serve me as an MP,” he said.
