Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga has insisted that Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin has no power to reverse the passage of the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2025, stressing that the legislation was duly approved in line with parliamentary procedures.
His comments follow the Speaker’s call for Parliament to reconsider the controversial bill after expressing surprise that all legislative stages had been completed during proceedings on Friday, May 29.
Speaking on Eyewitness News on Tuesday, June 2, Ayariga maintained that the Speaker’s remarks amount only to an appeal and do not affect the validity of the decision already taken by the House.
“The Speaker is only appealing. He cannot in any way reverse what has happened. What has happened has happened,” he said, adding that Parliament has passed several bills using similar procedures without breaches.
He explained that concerns regarding the mandatory 24-hour interval between legislative stages were addressed through a procedural motion for abridgement of time, which he said is a standard parliamentary practice.
“If you check the Votes and Proceedings, you will see clearly that the procedural motion was moved and allowed. We abridged time and proceeded accordingly, so there was no breach,” he stated.
Mr. Ayariga also dismissed claims that the bill could have been withdrawn by one of its sponsors, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour, arguing that multiple sponsors backed the legislation and that no single member could halt its progress.
“The Honourable Ntim Fordjour was not the only sponsor, so whatever he intended to do had no effect on the process,” he added.
The debate over the bill continues amid concerns raised by some MPs, including Bosome Freho legislator Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh, who questioned the absence of Minority sponsors during the final stages of the legislative process.
