Ntim Fordjour rejects call for more dialogue, says Anti-lgbtq bill has faced a decade of debate and delay

Rev. Ntim Fordjour says any call for a new national dialogue on the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill is unnecessary and risks reopening a debate that he argues has already been exhaustively settled through parliamentary processes, public hearings and a Supreme Court ruling.

According to him, the bill has suffered a long history of obstruction. “Even at the very first stage, it was deleted from the order paper, a practice that has never been seen in the history of Parliament,” he said, describing the removal as part of years of “delay, filibustering and blocking.”

His comments respond indirectly to the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference, which recently called for national dialogue on the bill.

While respecting the Church’s position, Fordjour believes further consultation would enable external pressure groups to influence the process.

“The calling for national dialogue… is going to fall into the trap of the United Nations Human Rights Council, who have written a very long statement… urging the foreign minister to advise stakeholders to change or amend certain parts of the bill,” he said.

Fordjour argued that extensive engagement has already taken place over the last decade, noting that the previous Parliament completed all three readings before the bill faced a Supreme Court challenge.

“The Supreme Court settled it… and ruled that no aspect of the bill violates our constitution, nor does any part violate any international human rights treaty obligations that the government has subscribed to,” he said.

He concluded that the only step left is executive action. “What we need now is for President Mahama to call Mr Speaker to issue a public directive.”

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