Mahama can return Anti-LGBTQ Bill to Parliament, not Bagbin - Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu

Former Majority Leader in Parliament, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, has challenged Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin's directive to revisit the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, insisting that the Constitution does not permit the Speaker to return a bill to the House once it has been passed.

In an interview on Kessben TV monitored by GhanaWeb on June 11, 2026, he pointed out that Parliament has a clearly defined legislative process and a bill ceases to be before the House after it has successfully gone through all the required stages.

"It is against the Constitution and the Standing Orders to reintroduce the bill. There are processes to be followed before a bill is passed: First Reading, Second Reading, Consideration Stage, and Third Reading. A bill is not passed by the House unless it has gone through all these stages. Once it is passed, it moves from Parliament," he said.

The former Majority Leader argued that if any procedural lapses arise after a bill has been passed, it is the President who may trigger further action under the constitutional process.

Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu maintained that once Parliament has completed its work on a bill, the Speaker cannot unilaterally reopen the legislative process, arguing that any further action must be initiated through the President in accordance with the constitution.

"The president will have to consult the Attorney General... If there is any need for the bill to come back to Parliament, it is the president who can send it back, not the speaker," he said.

His comments come after Speaker Bagbin directed Parliament to revisit the anti-LGBTQ bill over concerns that the bipartisan support reflected in the committee report was not adequately demonstrated during proceedings on the floor of the House.

Meanwhile, President Mahama has said the bill is far from becoming law despite its recent passage in Parliament, citing unresolved procedural and constitutional concerns.

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Parliament passed the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2025, on May 29, following extensive debate and several amendments.

The bill is aimed at regulating LGBTQ+-related activities in Ghana.

In 2024, Parliament passed a similar bill, but it did not become law after former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo declined to assent to it amid legal challenges that followed its passage.

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