Supreme Court throws out Ayariga’s case against free SHS

The Supreme Court has struck out a case brought before it by the Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, Mahama Ayariga which has to do modalities of some social intervention programmes initiated by the Nana Akufo-Addo government.

The Supreme Court presided over by Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo says it took the action for want of or lack of prosecution.

Ayariga sued the Akufo-Addo administration in March 2018 over the implementation of the Poverty Eradication Programme (IPEP), Free Senior High School, Planting for Food and Jobs as well as the operations of existing agencies like the Microfinance and Small Loans Center (MASLOC) and others.

Mr. Ayariga had argued that the government failed to submit operational modalities for the policy framework of some of these programmes to Parliament.

He had wanted the court to compel either the President or the relevant sector ministers to present the pertinent legislation and regulations to Parliament.

Ayariga was seeking “an order of mandamus compelling the President or his assigned Ministers to bring to Parliament appropriate legislation establishing the institutions or agencies to implement the said initiatives, and to have proper regulations presented to Parliament for enactment to govern the exercise of discretionary power necessarily implicated in the implementation of the said initiatives once the Appropriations (No. 2) Act, 2017 (Act 951) was passed by Parliament authorizing the appropriation of the funds.”