The New Patriotic Party (NPP) Minority Caucus in Parliament has expressed disappointment and frustration over the alleged delay in reintroducing the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, also known as the anti-LGBTQ bill.
Reverend John Ntim Fordjour, the lead sponsor of the bill, stated on Friday on the Floor of the House that it had been five weeks since Mr Alban Bagbin, the Speaker of Parliament, assured the House that the bill was undergoing final fine-tuning, yet it had not been brought back for consideration.
“The Speaker declared that it should be on the order paper, but this attempt by the government to block the bill from being featured is a big disappointment to the people of this country,” he said.
“Mr Speaker, we demand that if it was an oversight or error, it must be corrected, and the bill be added to the order paper so that it will be laid and presented for first reading,” he added.
In his reaction, Mr Yusif Sulemana, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for Bole Bamboi, referenced former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for failing to fulfill the responsibility of signing the bill when passed in the Eighth Parliament.
He urged against politicizing the issue saying, “I am confident that the President, John Dramani Mahama, will sign the bill once it’s ready,” he said.
However, Mr Mahama Ayariga, the Majority Leader, dismissed the claims and assured the House that the government had no intention of obstructing the bill’s reintroduction and was committed to ensuring its passage.
The bill, which aims to criminalise same-sex relationships and restrict LGBTQ activities, has sparked intense debate and criticism from human rights groups, who argue it violates fundamental human rights and could harm Ghana’s global image.
