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Haruna Iddrisu, the Member of Parliament for Tamale South, has raised serious concerns regarding a letter from the Presidency urging Parliament not to forward the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill to President Akufo-Addo for approval, deeming it a significant threat to Ghana’s democracy.
The Office of the President issued a letter dated March 18, 2024, advising Parliament to refrain from sending the anti-LGBTQ+ bill to President Akufo-Addo for his assent.
This directive, according to Nana Bediatuo Asante, the Secretary to the President, is based on the acknowledgment of two pending applications for an order of interlocutory injunction before the Supreme Court.
Speaking to journalists, Haruna Iddrisu expressed his belief that the directive reflects President Akufo-Addo’s desire to exert control over other branches of government.
He called on the public and all other stakeholders to rally to prevent the president from overstepping his mandate.
“I am unable to sleep because this is a monumental threat to Ghana’s democracy and a monumental threat to Parliament as an institution. By Article 93, we are clothed with legislative authority and legislative mandate. This letter only reflects President Akufo-Addo’s quest for predominance over other organs of state and that is unacceptable and that must be fought by all persons who love democracy and who cherish the principles and values of the 1992 Constitution.
“The framers of our Constitution endowed Ghana with a separation of powers, the executive, the legislature, the judiciary, and a division of powers. It endowed us that Parliament shall be responsible for making laws and what powers does the president’s secretary have in writing to the Clerk of Parliament and not the president himself in writing directly to the Speaker of Parliament as is required by our standing order so that officially this can be read as communication from the president? So ideally, this paper means nothing and must be ignored by the clerk.”
