Controversial Anti-LGBTQ Bill Returns to Parliament Floor for High-Stakes Second Reading
- The Ninth Parliament of Ghana has officially revived the consideration of the nation's highly controversial anti-LGBTQ legislation
- Formally titled the Promotion of Proper Human [Expletive] Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill, the draft law was presented on the floor of the House on Thursday, May 28, 2026, for a second reading
- Reintroduced as a private member's bill after lapsing upon the dissolution of the Eighth Parliament, the legislation has successfully cleared rigorous constitutional and procedural vetting by Speaker Alban Bagbin
The complex legislative and geopolitical tug-of-war that has gripped the nation for half a decade has officially returned to the forefront of state governance.
Source: UGC
The reintroduction of the bill marks a relentless push by its sponsors to institutionalise wide-ranging criminal penalties, despite sustained pressure from international bodies, human rights coalitions, and local legal experts.
The sweeping draft law was originally introduced in June 2021 by a bipartisan group of legislators spearheaded by Ningo-Prampram MP Sam George. It explicitly seeks to criminalise same-gender relationships, LGBTQ identity, funding, and public advocacy.
Despite its successful passage in 2024, the legislation never became an active law. Then-President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo withheld his presidential assent, citing pending constitutional challenges filed by civil society actors at the Supreme Court.
When the Eighth Parliament officially dissolved ahead of the 2024 general elections, the unsigned bill technically lapsed and became entirely void under state protocols.
Refusing to let the initiative die, a coalition of ten MPs resubmitted the text to the newly formed Ninth Parliament earlier this year. Following a strict evaluation under Standing Order 187(2) regarding financial burdens on public funds, Speaker Alban Bagbin ruled that the private member's bill met all procedural thresholds for reintroduction, referring it back to the Constitutional, Legal, and Parliamentary Affairs Committee.
The bill’s formal return to the floor for a second reading on Thursday immediately sets up a massive cultural and legislative battleground.
Source: YEN.com.gh
