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A former clerk to Parliament, Emmanuel Anyimadu, has kicked against the Speaker’s directive for MPs to publicly vote on the controversial anti-gay bill before Parliament.

Alban Bagbin on Tuesday directed that committee sittings, debates and voting on the passage of the proposed Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill 2021 will be made public to ensure transparency and inclusiveness.

Reacting to the comment on The Asaase Breakfast Show on Wednesday (27 October), Anyimadu said secret voting is ideal.

“… It would have been better to ask members to vote secretly, after all we have a way of doing it, everybody will have a stance on marking or picking whether they are in favour of the bill or not,” Anyimadu said.

“At the end of the day the papers that are picked are counted. But then they have decided that this is how they want to go and once the decision has been taken, that is if leadership has met on the matter and they have agreed that this is how they want to do it, they can go ahead and do it. I don’t see anything wrong with it. But personally I would have advised that it should be done privately or secretly,” he added.

Anyimadu, however, admitted the speaker’s stance may have been influenced by some background deliberations.

“It will be very difficult for a Speaker to come publicly to speak the way he spoke, otherwise somebody might get up from the floor and even challenge what he said. So, I have a strong belief that something might have gone on,” he added.

Background 
Bagbin has directed that committee sittings, debates and voting on the Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill 2021 (anti-LGBTQ+ bill) will be made public to ensure transparency and inclusiveness.

Welcoming MPs from recess to commence the third meeting of the first session of the eight Parliament on Tuesday (26 October), Bagbin gave the assurance that all stakeholders and interested parties will be given the opportunity to share their opinions on the bill.

“The Parliament of Ghana is capable of handling the situation. I’ll assure citizens of this country that we’ll create the enabling environment for all to put across their views. At the end of the day the processes of the House will determine the outcome,” Bagbin said.

“And when that is done, I’m convinced that the law that will come out of this, will protect the culture and values of our people and the Ghanaian identity.

“The law agrees that we also take into consideration the human rights and freedoms that have been guaranteed under our constitution and it’s a law that takes into consideration the richness of the common sense, human decency and morality, fact and logic. And at the end of the day it’s a law that will bring and transform this country into something else. Let’s allow all stakeholders to participate in the deliberations of this House,” he said.

He added: “I know Ghanaians are expectant and I know we’ve over 100 petitions before the committee of constitutional, legal and parliamentary affairs. It’s not only Africa but the whole world is looking for the outcome of this bill, so we’ll not just allow people to come and delay the process. We’ll make the process public and the decision of this House will be public. We’ll want to know where each Member of Parliament stands.”

Violation of human rights
A group of 18 prominent Ghanaian citizens has rejected the anti-gay bill in Parliament, saying it constitutes an “impermissible invasion of the inviolability and human dignity” of the LGBTQI community.

The first reading of the anti-LGBTQI Bill took place on 2 August 2021 in Parliament, and its consideration is expected to resume in November 2021.

It was initiated by some six MPs, led by the opposition MP Sam George. The new law seeks to criminalise lesbianism and sex between men in Ghana.

The group of prominent citizens, led by the renowned legal practitioner Akoto Ampaw, said the anti-LGBTQI Bill “violates all the fundamental freedoms guaranteed by the 1992 constitution”. The group said that, if passed into law, the proposed legislation would send Ghana to a dark age of lawlessness.

“The bill violates virtually all the key fundamental freedoms guaranteed under the constitution, namely the right to freedom of speech and expression, the right to assemble, freedom of association and the right to organise, the right to freedom from discrimination and the right to human dignity,” Ampaw said at a press conference on Monday (4 October).