The President of IMANI Africa, Franklin Cudjoe has expressed concerns about the Presidency’s failure to discuss the consequences of the passage of the anti-gay bill with the various proponents.
There’s a political deadlock between the legislature and the executive following the passage of the bill, marked by lawsuits and a request from the Presidency to Parliament to withhold the bill’s transmission.
The Presidency sent a letter to Parliament requesting them not to transmit the anti-LGBTQ+ bill for assent. The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin rebuked the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for halting the transmission of the bill.
During an interview on The Big Issue on Citi TV, Mr Cudjoe suggested that respect and dialogue between the legislature and executive could have prevented the current situation.
“These matters that have occasioned this conflict. I think the matter could have easily been solved if the two parties both the legislature and the executive respected each other and underlined respect. Because if it was respected, we would even get to this particular scenario that we are currently facing. If they have discussed this matter. I think that is what should have been done.
“If that conversation had been had before this, what we are witnessing I’m sure would have been wiser and probably be better off as a country. But I think that is where the cabinet failed, and I think this one I put it squarely on the President. I don’t think they had enough wisdom in actually determining or acting this way.
Cudjoe argued for a broader discussion on the bill’s impact and criticized the state’s handling of the situation, which he described as a “sad spectacle.”
“Were there not a much larger more focused conversation about the impact of this bill on every aspect of our lives? Before it was even considered, and even before it was considered were overtures made to whoever was promoting the bill.
“Even though, Parliament had passed it to have some real conversations and say we can do ABCD, let’s agree to disagree on this particular area. No matter how contentious this particular bill is. The state should have had a much better way of handling this matter before it generated this sad spectacle,” he said.
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