Opinions of Wednesday, 28 June 2023
Columnist: Dr. John-Baptist Naah
It was indeed refreshing to see the constituents of Assin North give James Gyakye Quayson a resounding and handsome electoral victory once again in the just-ended by- election.
The power of the people indeed belongs to the people themselves but not to any external force trying to take it away from them!
The consistent manipulation of issues and poor management of our national resources for the past few years by this failing Akufo-Addo-Bawumia-led regime cannot change the reality on the ground in the case of the Assin North by-election.
Indeed, the constituents of Assin North have convincingly spoken on behalf of the majority of Ghanaians to register their utter displeasure and disapproval of this current Akufo-Addo- Bawumia-led regime in the Assin North by-election. How the affairs of the country are run now leaves much to be desired!
The cunning maneuvering including open vote buying by the NPP during the Kumawu by- election obviously did not work for them in the case of the just-ended Assin North by- election.
This should be a big lesson for the NPP party to realise that Ghanaians are fed up with their show of insincere and crass incompetence in the management of the country’s affairs.
Therefore, no amount of vote buying and intimidation at the polling stations will change the minds of Ghanaian voters now and in the upcoming 2024 general elections.
The recent Supreme Court’s ruling on Hon. Quayson’s case raised more questions than answers, leading to legitimate concerns on a judicial compromise by the Executive Arm of government and amounting to the injustice suffered by the ‘Old soldier’, as he is preferred to be called.
The other bit of the Supreme Court’s ruling, which said that Quayson’s parliamentary records be expunged, was so mind-boggling to me! I completely agree with these genuine sentiments of Ghanaians!
Finally, the ‘Supreme Court’ of Assin North has unambiguously and overwhelmingly spoken in this by-election to overturn the verdict of the Supreme Court of the land by retaining James Gyakye Quayson in this sensitive first-ever Hung Parliament in Ghana!
Ghanaians are indeed proud of the constituents of the Assin North for their high value judgement and sound reasoning to retain their hardworking MP despite all odds.
Long live Ghana, long live Assin North, and long live Gyakye Quayson.