Kwame Anyimadu-Antwi ustifies delay in approving anti-gay bill

The Chairman of the Constitutional, Legal, and Parliamentary Affairs Committee of Parliament, Kwame Anyimadu-Antwi, has shed light on the reason behind the delay in the passage of the Promotion of Proper Human Rights and Family Values Bill into law.

This comes in response to claims made by the lead sponsor of the bill, Samuel Nartey George, who implied that the bill was being frustrated due to external influence on some Majority MPs by pro-LGBTQ+ groups.

However, Mr Anyimadu-Antwi has dismissed these allegations, asserting that the delay was a result of conflicting legislative priorities and not external pressures.

“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.,” he explained during an interview on Accra-based Joy FM on December 6, 2023.

“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.”

Anyimadu-Antwi, who also serves as the Asante Akim Central MP, emphasized that legislative hurdles are common and not a cause for alarm. He pointed out that the parliamentary schedule often prioritizes pressing matters like the budget, which can impact the timeline for other bills.

“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.