Supreme Court Blocks Koforidua High Court’s Move to Jail Ernest Kumi
4-1 ruling delays High Court’s decision as MP fights to overturn conviction
- A 4-1 majority ruling halts the Koforidua High Court from sentencing Ernest Kumi
- The MP argues the High Court lacked jurisdiction as election results weren’t gazetted
- Kumi was found guilty for defying an injunction barring his swearing-in as MP
The Supreme Court, in a 4-1 majority ruling, has blocked the Koforidua High Court from sentencing Akwatia MP Ernest Yaw Kumi for contempt until a final decision is reached on his appeal to overturn the conviction.
Justice Gabriel Pwamang dissented, while the remaining four justices supported the stay.
Ernest Yaw Kumi had filed a certiorari and prohibition application at the Supreme Court, challenging his February 19 contempt conviction. His lawyer, Gary Nimako Marfo, argues that Justice Emmanuel Senyo Amadehe of the Koforidua High Court overstepped his jurisdiction by proceeding with the case before the Electoral Commission had officially gazetted the election results.
Justice Amadehe had found Kumi guilty of contempt and issued a bench warrant for his arrest, citing his defiance of an interim injunction that barred him from being sworn in as an MP.
