The Member of Parliament for Assin North, James Gyakye Quayson, who was sworn-in as the newest MP on Tuesday, July 4, following his victory in the June 27 by-election, says the challenges confronting the nation “call for Parliament to be more assertive in its oversight, lawmaking and deliberative functions.”

According to him, “our country is confronted with many challenges such as massive unemployment, economic bankruptcy, macroeconomic instability, corruption, environmental degradation, declining education standards, and over-politicised state institutions.”

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Quayson made the remarks in a statement he issued Tuesday to thank God, the people of Assin North and Ghanaians in general for ensuring he represents the people of his constituency as their MP, promising also to “work assiduously with my colleagues in the Minority Caucus to confront these challenges to enhance growth, economic opportunity, shared prosperity, and to advance our march towards equal rights, equal justice, equal citizenship, and equal opportunity for all.”

“As daunting as our challenges are, I am optimistic about the prospects of a better future. I believe we can and must harness the rich pool of human and natural resources at our disposal to achieve broad-based and sustainable growth. This calls for leveraging the skills and talents of all our citizens, including those who hold other citizenships. I therefore look forward to working on and supporting the Constitution (Amendment) bill, 2021 in this endeavour.

“I am grateful to the Speaker of Parliament and the NDC parliamentary caucus for their warm welcome and their unwavering support throughout this journey.

“My heartfelt appreciation goes to the flagbearer of the NDC and incoming President of Republic of Ghana, H.E John Dramani Mahama for his continuous support, without which I will not be the MP for Assin North today. I also thank all national, regional, constituency and branch executives and in fact, the entire rank and file of my beloved party, the great NDC who have supported me throughout this journey. To my hardworking campaign team who have been with me through thick and thin, I say thank you. “Finally, I would like to specially thank the good people of Assin North and the country as a whole for their prayers and support over the last few years where I have been subject to many court processes merely because of my interest in serving my constituents and the country.”

With his swearing-in, Quayson has made a return to Parliament following the annulment of his 2020 election after the Supreme Court held that he did not qualify to contest at the time he filed his nomination because he owed allegiance to Canada instead of Ghana alone.

Gyakye Quayson's statement is reproduced in full below.