The apex court has begun hearing on the Speaker of Parliament's directive to declare some Parliamentary seats vacant.

Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin directed his lawyers to file a stay of execution application to temporarily suspend the Supreme Court's ruling that sought to suspend his directive on declaring some four parliamentary seats vacant.

Speaker Alban Bagbin had declared four parliamentary seats vacant in accordance with Article 97(g) and (h) of the 1992 Constitution.

This provision stipulates that any Member of Parliament (MP) who intends to run as an independent candidate or contest for a different party in the upcoming 2024 elections must vacate their seat.

The affected MPs were Cynthia Morrison, Kwadjo Asante, Andrew Amoako Asiamah, and Peter Kwakye Ackah. The Supreme Court’s suspension delays any immediate actions until the case is fully resolved.However, the Supreme Court instructed Bagbin to halt his ruling after an application from New Patriotic Party (NPP) MPs challenged the Speaker’s ruling. The court, led by Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, issued a stay of execution, halting the enforcement of Bagbin’s ruling until further legal proceedings take place.