Samuel Nartey George, the Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram, has refuted claims that the House did not take up the Anti-LGBT Bill’s third reading as a result of a motion put forth by Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, the Deputy Majority Leader.
One of the bill’s sponsors, Sam George, stated on JoyNews’ Newsfile that Afenyo-Martin’s proposal did not, in fact, end the third reading.
“The motion made by my friend and wise senior, Afenyo-Markin, did not stop the bill from being read a third time. Sam George said, “We found some inconsistencies and mistakes in the draft document and requested that they be fixed; unfortunately, they hadn’t been done so when Afenyo-Markin submitted his work.
That explains why the co-sponsor, who is my colleague, spoke up in favor of Afenyo-Markin. He said, “The best way to get the bill cleaned up before it’s passed into law was to put it on hold at that time.”
There are parts of his submissions that align with the guiding principles of the bill as stated in the draft document, despite his declaration that he does not agree with Hon. Afenyo-Markin’s position in its entirety.
During his floor speech, Afenyo-Markin stated that while he fully supports the anti-LGBT bill, he disagrees with its provisions regarding the bill’s provision for custodial sentences.
He argued that community service should be substituted for that section. He believed that incarceration would not result in the reformation or correction of the inmates to enable their eventual recovery and reintegration into society at large.
In a separate interview with Asaase Radio, Kwame Anyimadu-Antwi, the Chairman of Parliament’s Constitutional and Legal Committee, echoed Afenyo-Markin’s sentiments.
He said, “So, I think Afenyo’s argument—which is very sound and says that this is an offense—is the best. You can punish them by making them do community service, which is something we haven’t developed yet.
Before the Anti-LGBT Bill is signed into law, Parliament still needs to make some final adjustments. It is anticipated that the bill will pass into law sooner rather than later.
