Anti-LGBTQ bill: You'll be remembered for not permitting this abomination under your regime — Charles Owusu encourages Akufo-Addo to assent bill

Charles Owusu, the Nkoranza North parliamentary aspirant, has urged President Nana Akufo-Addo to assent to the anti-LGBTQ+ bill, emphasising that it would be a lasting legacy for the party and the nation.

The bill, which has recently gained parliamentary approval, criminalises the promotion, advocacy, and acts of homosexuality in Ghana, subjecting offenders to a prison term ranging from 6 months to 5 years.

The international community, including UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, and US Ambassador to Ghana, Virginia Evelyn Palmer have criticised the bill.

Türk described it as "deeply harmful," calling on the President not to sign it into law.

He said, “The bill broadens the scope of criminal sanctions against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transexual and queer people – simply for being who they are – and threatens criminal penalties against perceived allies of LGBTQ+ people.

“I call for the bill not to become law. I urge the Ghanaian Government to take steps to ensure everyone can live free from violence, stigma and discrimination, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Consensual same-sex conduct should never be criminalised.”

Palmer, on the other hand, expressed concern over its potential infringement on human rights, emphasising its adverse effects on freedom of speech, assembly, and the press, as well as its potential negative impact on public order, public health, and Ghana's international reputation.

She wrote on X, “I am saddened because some of the smartest, most creative, most decent people I know are LGBT. The bill Parliament passed takes away not only their basic human rights but those of all Ghanaians because it undermines their constitutional rights to freedom of speech, freedom of assembly and freedom of the press. It will be bad for public order and public health. If enacted, it will also hurt Ghana’s international reputation and Ghana’s economy.”

The bill awaits the President's signature to become law.

President Akufo-Addo has previously expressed his disapproval of homosexuality, but his stance on signing the bill remains uncertain.

In light of these developments, Charles Owusu, speaking on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" morning show, called on the President to consider the long-term impact on the nation and its values.

He implored Akufo-Addo to make the anti-LGBTQ+ bill his enduring legacy, emphasising that permitting such practices is an abomination.

"Let this be the number one legacy you will leave for this nation, and posterity will remember you that it was under your regime that this abomination wasn't permitted," Charles Owusu advised the President.