Anti-Gay Bill: Asante Bediatuo Letter Contemptuous- Bagbin
The Speaker of the country’s Parliament, Rt Hon Alban Sumana Bagbin has classified as “contemptuous” a letter by the Secretary to the President, Nana Asante Bediatuo, requesting Parliament to desist from transmitting the Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill known as the Anti-LGBTQ Bill to the Jubilee House.
An address delivered in parliament on March 20, 2024, by the Speaker said the action of the Executive Secretary is out of place.
Chronicling the rigorous stages the bill underwent ahead of its eventual passage, he said the bill was rejected thrice by the Jubilee House without a formal communication to the House, a situation he finds “troubling”.
Condemning the action of the executive, Rt Hon Bagbin emphasized, “It is a matter of great concern that the executive branch has chosen to disregard the established constitutional structures that facilitate constructive dialogue and collaboration between the branches of government.”
The Speaker recognised that the development poses a grave threat to the legislative authority and, by extension, the democratic principles of the country as they erode the foundational checks and balances that ensure a vibrant and functioning democracy.
“The behaviour exhibited by the Presidency in refusing to accept the transmission of this bill not only deviates from established democratic practices but also undermines the spirit of cooperative governance and mutual respect for the arms of government.
“This is a principle that forms the cornerstone of our political system. Such actions, if left unchecked, risk setting dangerous precedents that threaten the integrity and functionality of our democratic institutions.”
Background
The Parliament on February 28, 2024, passed the Anti-LGBTQ Bill after its initiation in 2021 by eight legislators.
On March 4, President Akufo-Addo served notice about his intention to defer assent until a civil action against the bill in the Supreme Court is resolved.
Subsequently, the Secretary to the President issued a letter to the Clerk of Parliament on March 18 to cease all efforts to transmit the bill to the president for assent or otherwise citing two notices from courts together with advice from the country’s Attorney General.
“This Office is aware of two pending applications for an order of interlocutory injunction, both filed on 7th March 2024 in the Supreme Court in Dr. Amanda Odoi v. The Speaker of Parliament and The Attorney-General (21/13/2023) and Richard Sky v The Parliament of Ghana and The Attorney-General (31/9/2024) respectively, to restrain you and Parliament from transmitting the Bill to the President and, also, to restrain the President from signifying his assent to the Bill, pending the final determination of the matter,” the letter written by the Secretary to the President, Nana Asare Bediatuo noted.
“The Attorney-General has, by letter dated 18 March 2024, informed the President that he has been duly served with both applications and has advised the President not to take any step in relation to the Bill until the matters raised by the suits are determined by the Supreme Court.”
