Members of Parliament (MPs) are supposed to follow the law because their job is to help make laws.
If they break the law, they don’t get special treatment. The law applies to everyone equally, no matter who they are.
Recently, an MP from Akwatia, Ernest Yaw Kumi, has been in the news because a court has ordered his arrest.
We take a look at some four MPs who have suffered such a fate in the last four(4) years.
Francis-Xavier Sosu, MP for Madina
Francis Xavier Sosu, the MP for Madina, was the subject of a bench warrant issued by the Kaneshie District Court in Accra on November 29, 2021.
The warrant was issued after he failed to show up for a Monday morning hearing at the Kaneshie District Court.
Citing parliamentary duties, Mr. Sosu had missed the two prior court hearings.
However, based on court documents detailing conversations between the prosecution and the Madina MP’s attorney, the prosecution believed the warrant was required because the MP’s absence was disrespectful to the court.
Mr Sosu’s counsel, however, contended that the MP was engaging in work for the Constitutional and Legal Committee of Parliament, which had resumed public sittings on the anti-LGBTQ measure.
On October 25, 2021, Mr Sosu led a demonstration in his constituency over poor roads, which led to these legal issues.
Stephen Amoah, MP for Nhyiaeso
Dr Stephen Amoah, the Member of Parliament for Nhyiaeso, was the subject of an arrest warrant issued by the La Magistrate Court in 2021 for his failure to appear in court for violating traffic laws.
On Tuesday, December 7, 2021, the legislator and six other drivers were taken into custody in the vicinity of the Airport Bypass as part of a police operation to apprehend V8 vehicle drivers who were not adhering to traffic laws.
Only Dr Amoah and another driver, Samuel, did not show up for court, according to a police statement signed by ACP Kwesi Ofori, the Director-General of Public Affairs.
Affo Toffey, MP for Jomoro
A bench warrant for the arrest of Jomoro MP Dorcas Affo Toffey was issued by a Sekondi High Court on December 7, 2021. The MP’s eligibility to run in the 2020 parliamentary election was being contested due to her dual citizenship.
Justice Sedina Agbemava, who is in charge of the case, issued the warrant after the MP failed to show up for a Monday court session.
Joshua Emuah Kofie, a resident of the constituency’s Nuba-Mpataba, filed a contempt case against Madam Toffey after the MP allegedly neglected to show up before the court registrar to provide documentation demonstrating her purported renunciation of her Ivorian citizenship, as directed by the Sekondi High Court.
The NDC lawmaker was sued earlier in 2021 for allegedly holding dual citizenship before to the 2020 election.
As a result, her eligibility to serve as the Jomoro constituency’s representative in Parliament was contested.
In July, the beleaguered lawmaker’s attempt to suspend the High Court’s ruling for her to provide documentation demonstrating her renunciation of her purported Ivorian citizenship was denied.
Ernest Yaw Kumi, MP for Akwatia
Ernest Yaw Kumi, projected winner of the Akwatia parliamentary seat in the Eastern Region, was found guilty of contempt of court by a Koforidua High Court, which issued a bench warrant for his arrest on February 19, 2025.
When Kumi did not show up for court, the court issued a bench warrant for his arrest.
The conviction came after he disregarded a January 7 interim injunction that forbade him from taking the oath of office and being acknowledged as the Member of Parliament-elect for the Akwatia constituency because of a legal battle still pending over his election.
On January 7, 2025, Mr. Kumi appeared in Parliament to take the oath of office in contravention of this directive.
The convict did not show up in person for the hearing of the contempt case, according to the judge, Justice Senyo Amedahe.
Additionally, he dismissed a letter from the minority side of Parliament that claimed the MP’s frequent absences from the court were due to his legislative obligations.
The judge rejected the letter, stating that if he accepted the minority caucus’s letter, he would be contradicting his own decision.
