Member of Parliament for Old Tafo, , has criticised President and the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) for failing to prioritise the passage of the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill—commonly referred to as the anti-LGBTQ bill—despite campaign promises made to religious leaders ahead of the 2024 general elections.
Speaking in an interview with Kumasi-based Oyerepa FM & TV on Monday, January 5, 2026, Hon. Assafuah argued that the NDC government’s legislative record in 2025 contradicts its claims that the bill remains a priority.
“I have in my hands all the bills that they passed in the year 2025—urgently. Do you know what that means? It means those bills were priorities for the government. That is why they were brought to Parliament under Certificates of Urgency,” he said.
According to him, the Mahama administration, backed by a supermajority in Parliament, passed 34 bills in 2025 alone through Certificates of Urgency, yet failed to include the anti-LGBTQ bill among them.
“In 2025, the NDC government passed 34 bills by way of a Certificate of Urgency. Thirty-four,” he emphasised.
Hon. Assafuah further accused the NDC of misleading religious leaders—particularly Christian clergy—during the 2024 presidential and parliamentary elections.
“In 2024, they misled the clergy to follow them around,” he stated.
Responding to questions about why former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo did not assent to the bill after it was passed by Parliament, Hon. Assafuah said the issue was complicated by legal challenges before the Supreme Court. However, he insisted that the more serious issue was the conduct of President Mahama after assuming office.
“Granted that Akufo-Addo did not sign—let us even take it that way—the person who met the Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference and gave them assurances was President Mahama. He told them that if the bill came to him, he would sign it urgently,” Assafuah said.
He alleged that President Mahama made firm commitments to religious leaders, including the Catholic Bishops, but has since failed to act on them.
“He lied to them, and the pastors bought into it—that LGBTQ is a national priority. If it was truly a priority, why wasn’t it included among the 34 bills passed under a Certificate of Urgency?” he asked.
Hon. Assafuah also accused the government of internal inconsistency, claiming that while the bill had previously appeared on Parliament’s Order Paper, it was later withdrawn by the Majority Leader, who oversees government business in Parliament.
“President Mahama says one thing, the Majority Leader says another. The bill was even placed on the Order Paper at some point, but the Majority Leader ensured it was removed,” he alleged.
In his concluding remarks, the Old Tafo MP expressed disappointment in the silence of religious leaders who were vocal about the bill in 2024.
“Today, our pastors are quiet. I am hurt. I am disappointed. They are not speaking the way they spoke in 2024. It makes me question whether the conscience they appealed to then is the same conscience they are using now,” he said.
Rightify Ghana 