According to Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Vice Chair of the Party’s Manifesto Committee, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), will not think twice about signing the anti-LGBTQ bill into law, barring any legal objections.
“He has said openly that he is anti-LGBTQ, and he’s not going to support any conversation or argument that says we should normalise or legalise LGBTQ things in this country,” he told Joy News’ PM Express on Monday.
The Minister of Housing admitted that legal action is currently being taken against the bill to ascertain whether the proper legal procedures were followed before it was passed.
“It’s being litigated, and I’m not going to make a pronouncement on the legality of that bill, but he has said clearly that he will protect Ghanaian family and cultural values. He does not support all these LGBT things that some people are trying to promote. He’s totally against it,” he stated.
In May this year, Dr. Bawumia reaffirmed his stance, making it clear that LGBTQ activities would not be tolerated in Ghana if he is elected president.
“On this matter of LGBTQ, I want to say again without any equivocation that we will not allow it in Ghana. It is not going to be allowed. Our Bible says no, our Quran says no, and our people say no. So no. That is the answer,” he declared.
“No man will be marrying a man, no woman will be marrying a woman. It is not our value. And I will stand firm no matter the consequences. We will safeguard our country, and we will safeguard our people,” he added.
Ho West MP Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzrah, on the other hand, has urged Dr. Bawumia to compel President Akufo-Addo to sign the measure into law immediately, contending that Bawumia should use his position as vice president to persuade the president to take action.
“If he is man enough to rule this country, he should be able to tell his boss, ‘Look, my boss, this is our cultural value, please sign this bill,’” the MP said on Joy FM’s Top Story.
Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, the MP for Ofoase Ayirebi, disagreed, saying that if the measure was properly drafted and presented to Dr. Bawumia, he would not hesitate to sign it into law.
“If a bill properly constructed has gone through the processes and is legally laid before him unless there’s something fatally wrong with the bill, he will pass it into law,” Mr Oppong Nkrumah stated.
He went on to say, “The Speaker of Parliament had to decide whether or not that bill will impose a charge on the public purse.” This is why the current bill is being challenged.
“Those who have sued are arguing among other things that the Speaker did not make that determination, and, therefore, could not have admitted it properly as a private member’s bill for it to be passed. That is one of the fatalities they are complaining about,” he clarified.