Minority leader, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, has accused the government of persecuting Assin North MP, James Gyakye Quayson.

He noted that the ongoing day-by-day court proceedings on the Gyakye Quayson case are geared at frustrating the MP and the party and to further deny the people of Assin North representation in the house.

“The intention of government is to deny the NDC the opportunity to have Hon. Quayson to be voting with us and be doing business with us. The intention is to deny the people of Assin North from representation and to impoverish them. That is the idea,” he said on JoyNews’ PM Express.

He reiterated the NDC’s stance that the MP has not broken any law, and thus has appealed to the judiciary to not prevent the MP from performing his constitutional mandate.

“I do not think that he has broken the law. The court must decide but he should also not be prevented from doing his job. The judge is certainly doing his job. Hon. Quayson is also occupying a constitutional office and he should be allowed to do his job.

“He can go to court maybe once a week, maybe when parliament is not in session, but he should be allowed to work. He should be allowed to work, simply put. And we think that this is not prosecution, it is persecution.”

He further accused the NPP of orchestrating the “persecution” of Gyakye Quayson through the court proceedings.

“It is persecution because one, they didn’t want him to enter the chamber on the eve of the 6^th of January 2021. They tried everything possible not to allow him to enter the chamber. We ensured he was sworn in. they injuncted him for 14 months, prevented him from doing his duties as a member of parliament for 14 months.

“Aside that, they took the matter to court, the court made pronouncement on it and said that look the election was null and void and so there should be the need for another election. He contested. When he filed his nomination the attorney general went to court to urge the court to hear the case on a daily basis to prevent him from campaigning a week to the election.

“How can someone who has one week to election, contesting for election, leave his constituency where he’s supposed to campaign, leave there and attend court on a daily basis? So clearly it tells me that they’re persecuting the guy.

“Aside that, the guy has won. He’s supposed to represent his people. Parliament sits Tuesdays to Fridays, you’re saying that he cannot sit and that he has to be in court on a daily basis, I mean what is this?”

He suggested that rather than the day-to-day court proceedings, the proceedings could be done once a week or when the house is not sitting to allow the MP function as he is constitutionally mandated to.