Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu Challenges Kpandai Seat Vacancy Letter

Former Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, has raised concerns about the legality and procedure followed in a letter from the Parliamentary Service to the Electoral Commission (EC) declaring the Kpandai Parliamentary seat vacant.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Wednesday, December 10, Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu argued that the action deviates from established parliamentary practice and suggests an inconsistent application of rules.

The controversy stems from a letter addressed to EC Chairperson, Jean Mensa, signed by the Clerk to Parliament, Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror. The letter indicated a vacancy in the Kpandai seat following a High Court ruling that mandated a re-run of the 2024 Parliamentary Election.

This communication initiated the administrative steps necessary for a by-election. However, the Minority Caucus has called for the immediate withdrawal of the letter, deeming it unlawful and procedurally incorrect. They claim the Clerk acted without the necessary authorization and violated parliamentary norms.

Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu supported these concerns, drawing a comparison to the case of Gyakye Quayson. He recalled that in that instance, the Speaker of Parliament insisted that all court communications concerning a sitting MP be directed to the Speaker, not the Clerk.

“In the Gyakye Quayson case, when communication from the court came through the Clerk, the Speaker made it clear that because the matter concerned a Member of Parliament, it fell outside the Clerk’s jurisdiction. The Speaker was the appropriate authority,” he explained. “The Clerk was instructed to return the court’s letter, and the Speaker was substituted as the recipient. So, what has changed today, that a service directed at the Clerk now stands? And it is the same Speaker presiding over Parliament.”

He further pointed out that the Speaker had exercised caution in the Gyakye Quayson matter, particularly after lawyers signaled their intent to appeal the ruling.

“Let me quote the Speaker’s own words,” he said. “’An irreparable damage will be done to Gyakye Quayson if Parliament rushed to communicate the decision of the court to the Electoral Commission.’ We were therefore advised to await the exhaustion of all legal processes. What has changed now?”

The former Majority Leader emphasized that it is unprecedented for a Clerk to independently act on such matters. “Let’s be frank, no Clerk has ever taken the initiative in a situation like this. It has never happened,” he stressed.

“Typically, when such communications arrive, the Speaker convenes the leadership. We are all briefed, we deliberate, a decision is reached, and only then is the Clerk instructed to respond. A Clerk does not act unilaterally. There should be no illusion about this,” he added.

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