Same-sex marriage will never happen under my Presidency – Akufo-Addo

 

President Akufo-Addo has given the strongest indication yet about his position on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBTQ+) activities in the country.

As far as the President is concerned, legislation of same-sex marriage to become lawful is not a matter he will ever consider.

“I have said it before, and let me stress it again, that it will not be under the Presidency of Nana Addo Dankwah Akufo-Addo that same-sex marriage will be legal,” he said Saturday.

He made these comments at the installation of the 2nd Archbishop of the Anglican Church held in Asante Mampong.

The past few weeks have been characterised by a plethora of discussions over LGBTQ+ following the opening of the group’s office in Accra.

The development has been condemned by many as a subtle enforcement of the group’s activities which they say flies in the face of the country’s laws, culture and beliefs.

The police together with the landlord on February 24 stormed and locked the LGBTQ office at Ashongman in Accra in the wake of public discourse over their operations.

Pro-gay rights activists in the country have argued that the law does not explicitly outlaw the act aside from its criminalisation of unnatural carnal knowledge adding that government must protect their interests as citizens.

Meanwhile, anti-gay rights advocates, National Coalition for Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Value and religious factions such as the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC), National Peace Council, National Chief Imam have further advanced arguments for the government to dispel the ambiguity surrounding the laws on sexuality.

Addressing the cheering gathering, President Akufo-Addo insisted that; “…it will never happen in my time as President.”

Meanwhile, Executive Director of the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) has cautioned government to not be swayed by what he described as the tyranny of the masses in relation to the protection of minority groups in the country.

Professor Henry Kwasi Prempeh said should government allow itself and its power to be deployed by the majority against minority groups, it further marginalises and victimises these minority groups in the country.

Source: Kenneth Awotwe Darko