Legal Counsel to then President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo Kow Essuman has revealed that the controversial anti-LBGTQ+ bill passed by the 8th Parliament was never officially transmitted to the Presidency for assent.

Speaking to Starr Today’s Tutuwaa Danso, Kow Essuman explained that although some parliamentary officials attempted to forward the bill, the process did not follow proper constitutional procedure.

“The bill did not officially get to the Presidency. We were in Cabinet at Peduase when we were informed that some officials from Parliament sought to bring the bill, which was not the proper process, and the officials were subsequently informed that unless due process was adhered to, the bill was not going to be accepted.”

Essuman added that the situation was under special circumstances because the bill was before the Supreme Court at the time. He revealed that when the matter was brought to the attention of the President’s Secretary, Nana Bediatuo Asante, a letter was written to the Clerk of Parliament indicating that the bill should not be brought to the Presidency until the legal challenge was resolved.

When asked whether President Akufo-Addo would have assented to the bill had the legal roadblocks been cleared, Essuman said the legislation itself faced significant constitutional and human rights concerns.

“The bill had fundamental constitutional hurdles. It had not crossed certain hurdles that the Constitution expected it to cross, and beyond that, there were human rights provisions that were not properly couched,” he stated.

His revelation confirms comments made by Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga on the floor of Parliament on Tuesday that the bill was never transmitted to the Presidency for assent, despite earlier directives from Speaker Alban Bagbin for it to be resubmitted following a Supreme Court ruling.