https://en.sputniknews.africa/20240517/ghanas-parliament-to-reconvene-friday-after-suspension-over-lgbt-bill-dispute-with-president-1066596296.html
Ghana's Parliament to Reconvene Friday After Suspension Over LGBT Bill Dispute With President
Ghana's Parliament to Reconvene Friday After Suspension Over LGBT Bill Dispute With President
Sputnik Africa
Lawmakers in the West African nation unanimously passed Africa's first anti-LGBT bill in February, but the president has since neither signed nor vetoed the... 17.05.2024, Sputnik Africa
2024-05-17T17:54+0200
2024-05-17T17:54+0200
2024-05-17T17:54+0200
sub-saharan africa
ghana
west africa
nana akufo-addo
parliament
lawmakers
anti-lgbt
anti-homosexuality
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Ghana's parliament, which has been suspended since March due to a dispute between the speaker and the president over an anti-LGBT* bill, will reconvene on Friday for an emergency session to address pending matters, the legislative body said in a statement.Last week, the Majority Leader, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, held a news conference demanding the recall of parliament to approve ministerial nominees and approve an urgent loan.On May 11, Parliament Speaker Alban Bagbin ordered that parliament be convened on May 17.In late February, Ghana's parliament passed a bill that criminalizes people who identify as LGBT and those who advocate for LGBT rights. Those who have sex with members of the same sex face five years in prison.In March, Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo said he would wait to consider the bill, explaining that it would be challenged in the High Court because a citizen had challenged its constitutionality.In response, Speaker Bagbin said the president's move contradicted constitutional provisions governing the West African country's legislative process and suspended parliament, making it impossible to approve ministerial nominees following a government reshuffle in February.Afenyo-Markin, the ruling party MP for the Effutu constituency in central Ghana, said Friday's emergency meeting would also consider a $150 million loan agreement between the government and the World Bank's International Development Association to boost Accra's economic resilience, as well as tax incentives for businesses.The speaker's office told the media that it is Bagbin's "constitutional duty" to recall lawmakers and that the sitting will be limited to the reasons given.Ghana's finance ministry warned that the president's signing of the anti-LGBT bill could cost the country $3.8 billion in financing from international banks over the next five to six years.* The "LGBT movement" is classified as extremist by the Russian authorities and is banned in Russia.
https://en.sputniknews.africa/20240509/ghanas-supreme-court-adjourns-hearing-on-challenge-to-anti-lgbt-bill-1066446779.html
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ghana, west africa, nana akufo-addo, parliament, lawmakers, anti-lgbt, anti-homosexuality
ghana, west africa, nana akufo-addo, parliament, lawmakers, anti-lgbt, anti-homosexuality
Ghana's Parliament to Reconvene Friday After Suspension Over LGBT Bill Dispute With President
Lawmakers in the West African nation unanimously passed Africa's first anti-LGBT bill in February, but the president has since neither signed nor vetoed the bill. In response, Ghana's Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, said it violated constitutional provisions and shut down parliament in March.
Ghana's parliament, which has been suspended since March due to a dispute between the speaker and the president over an anti-LGBT* bill, will reconvene on Friday for an emergency session to address pending matters, the legislative body said in a statement.
Last week, the Majority Leader, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, held a news conference demanding the recall of parliament to approve ministerial nominees and approve an urgent loan.
On May 11, Parliament Speaker Alban Bagbin ordered that parliament be convened on May 17.
In late February, Ghana's parliament
passed a bill that criminalizes people who identify as LGBT and those who advocate for LGBT rights. Those who have sex with members of the same sex face five years in prison.
In March, Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo said he would wait to consider the bill, explaining that it would be challenged in the High Court because a citizen had challenged its constitutionality.
In response, Speaker Bagbin said the president's move
contradicted constitutional provisions governing the West African country's legislative process and suspended parliament, making it impossible to approve ministerial nominees following a government reshuffle in February.
Afenyo-Markin, the ruling party MP for the Effutu constituency in central Ghana, said Friday's emergency meeting would also consider a $150 million loan agreement between the government and the World Bank's International Development Association to boost Accra's economic resilience, as well as tax incentives for businesses.
The speaker's office told the media that it is Bagbin's "constitutional duty" to recall lawmakers and that the sitting will be limited to the reasons given.
Ghana's finance ministry
warned that the president's signing of the anti-LGBT bill could cost the country $3.8 billion in financing from international banks over the next five to six years.
* The "LGBT movement" is classified as extremist by the Russian authorities and is banned in Russia.
