Why National Security Operatives Attempted To Arrest Akwatia MP – Interior Minister Reveals

Interior Minister, Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, has defended the attempted arrest of Akwatia Member of Parliament (MP), Ernest Yaw Kumi, by national security operatives.

Mr. Mubarak clarified that the national security personnel were acting on a warrant issued by the Koforidua High Court through the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB).

“The Koforidua High Court on February 19, 2025, issued an arrest warrant for Ernest Yaw Kumi, the Member of Parliament for Akwatia constituency. The warrant was served to National Security through the NIB Eastern office, via the National Security Coordinator,” he explained.

The Asawase MP made this clarification while answering questions in Parliament on Tuesday, March 17, 2025. He emphasized that the officers’ actions were in line with the court order.

“Right Honourable Speaker, the circumstances surrounding the attempted arrest of the Member of Parliament by the officers of the NIB were therefore carried out in accordance with the orders of the High Court, per the warrant dated February 19, 2025, for contempt,” he stated.

The Koforidua High Court had issued a bench warrant for Mr. Kumi’s arrest after convicting him of contempt of court. The conviction followed his disobedience of an interim injunction issued on January 7, 2025, which barred him from being sworn in as the Member of Parliament-elect for Akwatia due to an ongoing legal challenge to his election.

Despite the injunction, Mr. Kumi appeared in Parliament on January 7 to be sworn in. However, the Supreme Court, in a 4-1 majority decision on February 26, stayed the High Court’s ruling, pending the final determination of a motion seeking to quash the conviction.