The application to stay the Speaker’s decision was filed by New Patriotic Party (NPP) Members of Parliament (MPs).

Led by Majority Leader and Effutu MP, they sought the Court’s intervention to halt the enforcement of the ruling that would have affected three of their colleagues and one from the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

The application was filed ex parte, meaning that neither Speaker Bagbin nor Parliament was joined to the case.

This allowed the Court to consider the NPP MPs’ request without requiring the participation or response of the Speaker or other parliamentary authorities at this stage.

But Dr Arthur said the Apex Court was wrong in not hearing from the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin’s lawyers or parliament at large.

The Political activist said this in an interview on Adom FM’s morning show Dwaso Nsem, on Monday.

He asserted that, the Supreme Court in recent times has been involved in politics and accommodating to President Akufo-Addo and the New Patriotic Party(NPP).

“Everyone knows that with the time left, a by election wasn’t possible so it means that if the ruling of the Speaker had been enforced, it would altered Parliament but there were the Supreme Court could have handled the issue out of respect.

“The court is dealing with parliament and not an individual so they could have scheduled a hearing for Monday for the lawyers of both parties to make their case,” he said.

The case was heard by a panel of Supreme Court justices presided over by Chief Justice Gertrude Torkonoo.

Other members of the panel included Justice Mariama Owusu, Justice Kwame Adibu Asiedu, Justice Ernest Yao Gaewu, and Justice Yaw Darko Asare, who together delivered the ruling to stay the Speaker’s decision.

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According to him, there have been too many instances that raise questions about the neutrality of the apex court.

His remarks follow the Supreme Court’s recent order for the Speaker of Parliament to stay the execution of his ruling to oust four MPs who declared their intention to run as independent candidates in the upcoming election.

This application was made by Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin.

Based on these developments, Dr Kennedy fears that “on too many occasions, like the Domelevo case, the LGBT case, and in this current case our Supreme Court appears now to be doing more politics than law.”

Dr Kennedy made this comment on Newsfile on Saturday, October 19.

“Because elsewhere in the world, what the judiciary says does not always go and for Ghana’s judiciary, the Supreme Court, to continue to maintain their standing and the respect that they enjoy, they ought to be mindful of where they are in politics.

“It is strange, for example, that Domelevo’s case took as long as it took. It is strange that the LGBT case brutally truncated the law-making process that has been clearly set out and now brakes have been put on it, and all of a sudden this case, we managed to empanel a group of Supreme Courts, and within a day, a ruling have been made.

“When these things keep happening again and again, there is the perception that our judiciary is biased and too political as Kan-Dapaah and former President Mahama did say. I fear that sooner or later, we are going to get into the realm where every new government will insist on having its own Supreme Court and its own Electoral Commission because it does not trust the previous one.”

The activist advocated for guardrails on the Supreme Court, insisting that it is too eager to involve itself in political affairs.

He also noted that its decisions always seem to favour one side.

“So my point is that as a nation, we need to make sure that we put in the guardrails. I think that this judiciary, and particularly this Supreme Court, is too eager to stick its nose in political affairs and to stick it in consistently in a manner that seems to favor one side.”

Dr Kennedy believes a comprehensive review of the judicial regime will ensure some sanity and restore public confidence.

“It is dangerous to the stability of our political quality, and I think that this underlines the need for sweeping judicial reforms,” he added.

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According to him, the number of registered voters appears uneven when compared to the overall population.

He pointed to procedural errors in the registration process, suggesting that the use of outdated methods, such as relying on unconnected laptops exacerbates the problem.

Speaking on JoyNews’ AM Show on September 18, he said, “I can tell you that the register is bloated because if you look at the population and the percentage of the population that is registered, it looks as if our register is too large.”

“It comes from some of the procedural errors that when they are doing these registers, you need to apply biometric measures live or dynamically as you are doing it, so you don’t take a laptop that is unconnected with the biometric data, go and do and come and dump it,” he said.

According to Dr Kennedy, the current voter’s register may be bloated, suggesting that certain individuals could be benefiting from these discrepancies.

In addition, he stated that the EC should not be responsible for auditing its work.

“I am just saying that it will seem as if there are people who benefit from it, that is why it keeps happening. In fairness, to the EC, it has an interest in protecting its work. It is like you are a student who has taken an exam and you say I want my script remarked. The same teacher who marked the script you have a problem with says I will remark it for you. Ideally, a different person should mark the script.”

“I think it is in the interest of everybody to have independent people look at this so we can all have the results,” he said.

The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has been protesting against the Electoral Commission, demanding an audit of the register ahead of the December elections.

The party insists that there are several irregularities in the register that cannot ensure a free, fair and credible election.

The party made the demands after the EC admitted to the transfer of illegal votes in the Pusiga District of the Upper East Region.

Although the EC claims to have corrected the anomalies in the register, it has refused the NDC’s request to show evidence by giving them a copy of the corrected provisional register or re-exhibiting it.

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According to him, the decision by the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) to remove the former Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu was unwise.

He emphasised that though he disagrees with Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu on certain issues, he has been a loyal member of the NPP stating that “even if there was a need to change him, the manner that occurred was inappropriate.”

Speaking on Newsfile on Saturday, February 24, Dr Kennedy empahsised the detrimental nature of attempting to remove incumbent MPs who have either opted not to seek re-election or were defeated in the party’s primaries.

He argued that such actions are self-harming, particularly considering the nearly even division within the current Parliament.

“So if you do these things and they do not have a commitment to the government’s agenda, the rest of the way will be very difficult because people can miss votes so I don’t think this is a good idea.”

Commenting on the underlying principles, the political activist said that the 2024 Standing Orders of Parliament represent a significant advancement in democracy.

He highlighted that the current weaknesses in the constitution stem from the lack of independence and strength in Parliament.

“So I think that we need to encourage Parliamentary caucuses that develop its own leadership and strength and principles independent of their party’s and are accountable directly to the public,” he said.

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The US-based physician, in an interview with Accra-based Citi TV criticised government and its communicators for continuously attributing Ghana’s economic woes to the outbreak of COVID-19 and the Russian-Ukraine war.

Dr. Arthur Kennedy said government and the NPP as a whole will soon run out of excuses and find a comfy seat to attribute the current hardship to the outbreak of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

“I have heard that very soon, the NPP will add the Israeli-Palestinian war to the list of excuses [it already has]. Let’s be serious; as a result of COVID-19, the government received $3 billion from external funders. In addition to that, the government imposed a COVID tax that it has yet to remove, yet we keep making COVID the excuse.”

He also touched on the NPP’s flagbearer primary, which he indicated has exposed the weaknesses and threats to the party’s democratic principles.

“The NPP had a weak hand even before the primary season started because of the government’s record. Not only that, the primary process has discredited the government and the party in terms of our openness and alignment with our democratic principles.”

“Kennedy Agyapong has done more damage to the credibility of the NPP than Alan did by leaving

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