Nana Bediatuo’s letter is contemptuous to Parliament – Speaker

The Speaker of Parliament has described the letter by the Executive Secretary to the President, Nana Asante Bediatuo, addressed to the Clerk to Parliament as contemptuous.

According to him, the letter urging the Clerk to refrain from transmitting the recently passed Anti-LGBT+ Bill to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for assent is a blatant disregard for legislative processes and constitutional mandates.

Speaking on March 20 before the House adjourned sine die, the Speaker of Parliament said, “Honorable Members, on 19 March 2024, my attention was drawn to a letter issued by the Executive Secretary to the President, Nana Asante Bediatuo, addressed to the Clerk to Parliament, which, in my opinion, is clearly contemptuous of Parliament. “The letter outlined that the Clerk ought to ‘cease and desist’ from attempting to transmit the Human Sexual Values Bill, 2021, to the President for necessary action in accordance with the Constitution. In the said letter, the Executive Secretary indicated that the Office of the President was aware of two pending applications for an order of interlocutory injunction seeking to restrain the Clerk and Parliament from transmitting the Bill to the President.

“It further indicated that the Honorable Attorney General had, on 18 March 2024, informed the President that he had received the two applications and had advised the President not to take any step in relation to the Bill until matters raised by the suit are determined by the Supreme Court. As a result, the Presidency conveyed to the Clerk that it was unable to accept transmission of the Bill.”

In a statement released on Monday, March 18, 2024, Nana Bediatuo Asante, the Secretary to the President, urged Parliament to refrain from transmitting the recently passed Anti-LGBT+ Bill to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for assent.

The Presidency cited two pending applications for an order of interlocutory injunction against the Bill before the Supreme Court.

He disclosed that the Attorney-General had informed President Akufo-Addo via a letter dated March 18, 2024, regarding the pending legal actions.

“It has come to the attention of this Office that while the President and other senior officials of the Presidency were at Peduase for a Cabinet Retreat on Thursday, 14th March 2024, you attempted to submit the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2024 (the "Bill") to Jubilee House for the President to signify his assent or otherwise to the Bill.

“This Office is aware of two pending applications for an order of interlocutory injunction, both filed on 7th March 2024 in the Supreme Court in Dr. Amanda Odoi v. The Speaker of Parliament and The Attorney-General (J1/13/2023) and Richard Sky v. The Parliament of Ghana and The Attorney-General (31/9/2024) respectively, to restrain you and Parliament from transmitting the Bill to the President and also to restrain the President from signifying his assent to the Bill, pending the final determination of the matter,” part of the statement said.

NAY/DO