The Communications Director of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), Richard Ahiagbah says the National Democratic Congress (NDC) insistence that President Akufo-Addo must assent to the Anti-LGBTQ+ bill is "nauseating."

According to him, President Akufo-Addo, in pointing to the legal challenge to the bill at the Supreme Court and therefore staying his hands at a decision, rather demonstrated his sensitivities to the law.

Speaking on Newsfile on March 9, Mr Ahiagbah emphasised that the President made this choice regarding objections raised in the courts, indicating that he would not sign the bill until those concerns were addressed.

He explained that the NDC’s assertion that President Akufo-Addo signed into law the E-levy even though it was a case in court does not hold water. He stated that if you put the anti-LGBTQ+ bill and the E-levy on a pedestal, one weighs heavier than the other.

“The consideration to do with revenue for a budget that Parliament has passed which is in motion being implemented already having been delayed for five, six months should wait for a court issue to be determined?

“….So it doesn’t arise in terms of comparing that [E-levy] to the LGBTQ bill that the President, in realising that there are concerns about it,” he said.

The NPP communications director stated that the anti-LGBTQ bill passed by Parliament carries significant cultural and moral weight and the determination the country is making in its democracy to grant people space for freedom.

According to him, the bill has the potential to impact people's rights and must be thought through carefully.

“So if you are a president seeking to sign that bill, you must be clear in your mind that every consideration for every possible right of people has been considered and you sign that only upon that satisfaction. So you don’t do that arbitrarily.

 “You don’t do that on a basis that former President Mahama who I can tell you immediately will flip flop on the position that he supports it, will criticize you for it. You sign it because you have done due diligence, you have weighed all the considerations and seen that ultimately this will promote social good, will advance the cohesion of our society, then you sign it,” he stressed.

Mr Ahiagbah stated that some aspects of the bill offends the constitution and is discriminatory which is why the bill must be considered thoroughly before it is signed.

“So that when you are trying to regulate any sexual intercourse that penetrates, excuse my usage, penetrates the anus, then that between the gay is illegal but between a heterosexual is okay. You can’t pass a law like that. It’s a double standard. You can’t do that,” he said.