Anyimadu-Antwi Justifies Delay In The Passage Of Anti-LGBTQ+ Bill

Chairman of the Constitutional, Legal, and Parliamentary Affairs Committee of Parliament, Kwame Anyimadu-Antwi, has justified the delay in passing the Promotion of Proper Human Rights and Family Values Bill into law.

This follows comments by the lead sponsor of the bill, Sam George, suggesting that the bill has remained at the consideration stage.

The Ningo Prampram MP is convinced that some Majority MPs have been influenced by pro-LGBTQ+ groups to stall the process.

However, Mr Anyimadu-Antwi has debunked these claims and insists that the reading of the bill has clashed with equally urgent matters, which has contributed to the delay.

According to him, there have been many other bills that are yet to be passed.

“This is not the only bill that has been with parliament at the consideration stage for months. We have the Interstate Succession Bill which has also been advertised a long time ago for consideration. We have other bills. For instance, the Internal Industrial Property Office Bill that the second reading was arrested because we didn’t have the numbers.

Read also: I’ll name MPs stalling progress of Anti-LGBT bill – Sam George

“Then, we also have the Chattered Institute of Restructuring and Insolvency Practitioners Ghana Bill 2023, also to be read for just a second consideration which should not take more than five minutes. Other sides are also complaining that we don’t have the numbers,” he said on JoyFM’s Newsnight on December 6, 2023.

Mr Anyimadu-Antwi, who is also the Asante Akim Central MP stressed that it was a normal legislation process, therefore there was no need for alarm.

“So this time, there are other things, when the budget is read, we give preference to the budget so it will be very difficult that we may have to depart from other areas but the bill that we have unanimously presented before the house. At any rate, I don’t determine what we do in the House.

“When the budget is read, they give preference to the budget issues otherwise we cannot do appropriation and the amendment that we have, but the main reason why the Proper Human Rights and Family Values Bill cannot be prosecuted now is that there is an issue that has been raised. We need to sit again as a committee and iron out those .. before we can do the appropriation,” he added.

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