James Gyakye Quayson (born 9 October 1952) is a

Ghanaian Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

who was elected to serve as the Member of Parliament for the Assin North constituency in the 2020 General Elections until his eligibility was challenged in a High Court. Controversy: in violation of Article 92, Clause 2a of Ghana's constitution, ''"a person shall not be qualified to be a member of parliament if he owes allegiance to a country other than Ghana"''. In a ruling on Wednesday, 28 July 2021, a Cape Coast High Court presided over by Justice Kwasi Boakye declared the 2020 parliamentary election held in the Assin North constituency, null and void. He was re-elected after a by-election held on Tuesday, June 27, 2023 and sworn in on Tuesday, July 4, 2023.

Early life and education

Quayson hails from Assin Bereku in the Central Region of

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

. He had his secondary education at the prestigious

Mfantsipim School Mfantsipim is an all-boys boarding secondary school in Cape Coast, Ghana, established by the Methodist Church in 1876 to foster intellectual, moral, and spiritual growth on the then Gold Coast. Its founding name was Wesleyan High School and ...

in Cape Coast, completing in 1969. He holds a bachelor's degree in

Social Sciences Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soci ...

(1996) and a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

Urban Planning Urban planning, also known as town planning, city planning, regional planning, or rural planning, is a technical and political process that is focused on the development and design of land use and the built environment, including air, water, ...

and

Community Development The United Nations defines community development as "a process where community members come together to take collective action and generate solutions to common problems." It is a broad concept, applied to the practices of civic leaders, activists ...

(2015) from

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. He also holds BA General Arts with Majors in Political Science and Sociology, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Career

Prior to being in parliament, he worked as a

District A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

Manager for the City of Toronto

Employment Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any othe ...

and

Social services Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administe ...

from 2020. He is also a

Social Services Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administe ...

and Community Development Administrator and manager, as well as a

framer A framer is someone who frames (shapes or gives shape to), or someone who constructs."Framer". def. 1. and "Frame, v." def. 5 and 7. ''Oxford English Dictionary'' Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) © Oxford University Press 2009 Building ind ...

Politics

Gyakye Quayson is a member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and was the member of parliament for Assin North Constituency in the Central Region of Ghana.

Challenge to membership of parliament

In December 2020, a resident of Assin Bereku, Michael Ankomah-Nimfah filed a petition at the

Cape Coast Cape Coast is a city, fishing port, and the capital of Cape Coast Metropolitan District and Central Region of Ghana. It is one of the country's most historic cities, a World Heritage Site, home to the Cape Coast Castle, with the Gulf of Guinea ...

High Court questioning the eligibility of Quayson's MPship for Assin North due he holding dual citizen of Canada and Ghana at the time he filed his papers at the

Electoral Commission of Ghana The Electoral Commission of Ghana(EC) is the official body in Ghana responsible for all public elections. Made up of seven members, its independence is guaranteed by the 1992 Ghana constitution. The current commission was established by the Elec ...

to stand in the

2020 Ghanaian general election General elections were held in Ghana on 7 December 2020. Incumbent President Nana Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) was re-elected in the first round after securing a majority of the votes. Former President John Dramani Mahama says he ...

when nominations were closed on 9 October 2020. According to the Ghanaian constitution, no person with dual nationality may hold office in government or parliament. The court upheld the petition and ordered a by-election for Assin North constituency. The by-election was held on 27 June 2023.

Court proceedings

A Cape Coast High Court presided over by Justice Kwasi Boakye ordered fresh parliamentary elections to be conducted in the Assin North constituency after declaring the election null and void, Mr. Quayson went on to challenge the decision of the High Court at the Appeals Court in which his application was dismissed. Michael Ankomah-Nimfah, the plaintiff/applicant who filed an election petition against Mr. Quayson has initiated another action at The

Supreme Court of Ghana The Supreme Court of Ghana is the highest judicial body in Ghana. Ghana's 1992 constitution guarantees the independence and separation of the Judiciary from the Legislative and the Executive arms of government.1992 Constitution Article 125( ...

requesting that, the court allows the Cape Coast High Court judgement to take effect as well as prevent further breach of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana by restraining him as member of parliament (MP) since he continued to sit in parliament as MP and this was challenged within the house as well. On 13 April 2022, The

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

by a 5-2 majority decision ruled that he should stop holding himself as a member of parliament. He indicated his intention to contest the Supreme Court ruling by filing an application for The Supreme Court to review its own decision. The Supreme Court set 13 June 2022 for the trial against Quayson after postponing his application review for restraining him to hold himself as MP and preventing him to attend Parliament to conduct business on behalf of the people of Assin North constituency. In a unanimous decision by The Supreme Court of Ghana consisting of Justices

Jones Dotse Jones Victor Mawulorm Dotse is a Supreme Court judge of the Republic of Ghana and The Gambia. Early life and education Jones Dotse was born in the Volta Region in 1953. He attended Kpando Secondary School from 1966 to 1971 and was educated at ...

Nene Amegatcher Nene Abayateye Ofoe Amegatcher is a Ghanaian lawyer, academic and judge. He has been an active justice of the Supreme Court of Ghana since 2018. He was born in Suhum, where he began his formal education. After his call to the Bar in 1980, he bega ...

Mariama Owusu Mariama Owusu is a Ghanaian judge. She has been on the bench since 1990 and was nominated a judge of the Supreme Court Judge in November 2019. She was sworn in on 17 December 2019 after gaining parliamentary approval. Early life and education Ow ...

, Gertrude Torkonoo, Henrietta Mensah-Bonsu, Emmanuel Kulendi and Barbara Ackah Ayensu, presiding Judge Justice Jones Dotse on 17 May 2023 ruled that the

acted unconstitutionally by accepting the nomination of Mr. Quayson without proof of citizenship renunciation before contesting the 2020 parliamentary elections. The Apex court outline four reasons for arriving at this decision in the case against Quayson which didn't sit well with the minority, National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the defendant, Mr. Quayson expressing his disappointment at the court's decision.

By-elections

In a letter to the Electoral Commission of Ghana (EC) on Monday, 29 May 2023, Parliament of Ghana declared the Assin North constituency seat vacant making way for a by-election. The EC announced 27 June 2023 as the date for the by-election in Assin North constituency in a press statement on Wednesday, 31 May 2023 and nominations will be received from 12 to 14 June 2023. Mr. Quayson, in a statement on 1 June 2023, officially declared his intention to contest in the Assin North constituency by-election with support from his party, the National Democratic Congress. On 27 June 2023, Mr. Quayson won the Assin North constituency by-election with 17, 245 votes, constituting 57.56% of votes cast. This figure indicates a significant reduction of his votes obtained in the 2020 general election, which was 17,498 votes representing 55.21%. James Gyakye Quayson, after emerging victorious in the by-election was sworn in for the second time as the Member of Parliament for Assin North on Tuesday, 27 June 2023.

Committees

Quayson was a member of the

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

Committee and also a member of the

Local Government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...

and

Rural Development Rural development is the process of improving the quality life and economic well-being of people living in rural areas, often relatively isolated and sparsely populated areas. Rural development has traditionally centered on the exploitation of l ...

Committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...

Personal life

James Gyakye Quayson is a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Quayson, James Gyakye 1952 births Living people National Democratic Congress (Ghana) politicians Ghanaian MPs 2021–2025 York University alumni