Member of Parliament for Tamale South, Haruna Iddrisu, has expressed deep concerns regarding recent communication from the presidency concerning a letter addressed to parliament.
In the letter, parliament was advised not to send the Bill on Human Sexual Rights and Family Values to President Akufo-Addo for approval.
Iddrisu emphasized the gravity of the situation, stating that he has been unable to sleep due to the perceived threat to democracy posed by the president’s communication.
The directive from the Office of the President, dated March 18, 2024, instructed parliament not to forward the anti-LGBT+ Bill for presidential assent.
Nana Bediatuo Asante, the Secretary to the President, defended this decision, citing the ongoing case before the Supreme Court. Asante stated that President Akufo-Addo would only take action after the court reached a decision.
In response, Haruna Iddrisu characterized the directive as an attempt by President Akufo-Addo to wield undue influence over other branches of government, as reported by citinewsroom.com.
“I am unable to sleep because this is a monumental threat to Ghana’s democracy and a monumental threat to parliament as an institution. By Article 93, we are clothed with legislative authority and legislative mandate. This letter only reflects President Akufo-Addo’s quest for predominance over other organs of state, and that is unacceptable and must be fought by all persons who love democracy and who cherish the principles and values of the 1992 Constitution.
“The framers of our Constitution endowed Ghana with a separation of powers: the executive, the legislature, the judiciary, and a division of powers.
It endowed us that parliament shall be responsible for making laws, and what powers does the president’s secretary have in writing to the Clerk of Parliament and not the president himself in writing directly to the Speaker of Parliament as is required by our standing order so that officially this can be read as communication from the president? So ideally, this paper means nothing and must be ignored by the clerk,” he stated.
