President John Dramani Mahama has indicated that the recently passed Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2025, popularly known as the anti-LGBTQ+ Bill, still has a long way to go before it can become law.
Speaking during a question-and-answer session at Chatham House in UK on Monday June 1, President Mahama said several procedural and legal issues surrounding the bill must first be addressed before any decision is taken on presidential assent.
The President noted that the legislation has attracted significant public attention because of its implications for family values and social policy in Ghana.
“The Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill has probably been the bill that has evoked the most interest in Ghana. It shows how important issues of family values are,” he said.
According to him, questions have already emerged regarding the manner in which the bill was passed by Parliament.
He cited concerns over whether there was a quorum at the time of its passage, as well as allegations of procedural lapses during the legislative process.
“There have been a few issues raised. One, that there wasn’t quorum when it was passed. That’s an issue that has come up, and then two, there were some procedural lapses in terms of its passage,” he stated.
Mahama revealed that he had received information that the Speaker of Parliament was addressing concerns raised about the process through which the bill was approved.
He explained that once the bill is formally transmitted to the Presidency, it will undergo a thorough legal review before any decision is taken.
The President said the Attorney General and legal advisers at the Presidency would scrutinise the legislation because it originated as a private member’s bill rather than a government-sponsored bill.
“It must come for assent and so once the president gets it, you go through it because you are not part of the discussion in Parliament. The legal counsel in the Presidency and the Attorney General would sit on it and make sure that everything is in order before the president is advised to assent,” he said.
Mahama also outlined other constitutional options available to the President, including referring the bill to the Council of State for advice if concerns arise.
He explained that if substantial issues are identified, the President could return the bill to Parliament and specify the concerns that need to be addressed.
“The president has another option. If there are some things that he thinks are a problem, he can refer it to the Council of State for advice. If substantial issues are raised, the president would return the bill to Parliament indicating exactly what the issues are,” he said.
He concluded by stressing that the legislative process is not yet complete.
“So there’s still quite a while to go before that bill becomes law,” he added.
The comments come days after Parliament passed the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2025, following amendments to the legislation.
Meanwhile, Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, has summoned the leadership of the House over the bill’s passage, insisting that consensus must be built around the legislation to ensure broader public acceptance.
Bagbin also expressed surprise at the manner in which the bill was passed on Friday, amid concerns raised by some lawmakers about procedural issues surrounding the approval process.
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