The sudden disappearance of the controversial anti-LBGTQ+ bill from Parliament’s Order Paper has sparked strong reactions from members of the Minority, who are demanding immediate answers from the government and parliamentary leadership.
Habib Iddrisu, a member of the Minority, expressed concern on the floor of Parliament, describing the situation as “a serious matter.”
“Mr Speaker, we cannot have bills advertised on the Order Paper yesterday and today, the same bills are missing without anything being explained to anybody,” he said.
“We, the leadership of the Minority here, we are not aware why it has not been captured in today’s Order Paper. Neither are the sponsors.”
The bill, officially known as the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, was expected to be reintroduced in Parliament on Wednesday, October 22, after being listed on Tuesday.
However, it was quietly removed from the day’s business agenda.
Also expressing frustration, Ntim Fordjour accused the government of attempting to “run away” from the bill.
“Suddenly, this clearly indicates that there seems to be a clear attempt by the NDC government to run away from this bill,” he charged. “The bill that they thought was important yesterday must be important today. We are demanding that the human sexual rights and Family Values Bill be passed now.”
The Majority Leader, Mahama Ayariga, explained earlier that there was no need to re-lay the bill since it had already been passed by the previous Parliament and forwarded to the Presidency for assent.
The anti-LBGTQ+ bill has been one of the most contentious pieces of legislation in recent years, drawing both strong support from conservative groups and sharp criticism from human rights advocates and sections of the international community.
With the bill’s sudden removal from the Order Paper, the Minority is demanding clarity and immediate action.
Source: Myjoyonline
