Committee Vice Chair James Enu Defends Anti-LGBTQ Bill Process, Says Amendments Were “Legitimate
Gladson Afriyie
Journalist
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Hon. James Enu, Member of Parliament for Tema West and Vice Chairperson of the Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee, has defended the process leading to the passage of the Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill, 2025, insisting the committee treated it as fresh legislation and made changes based on stakeholder feedback.
Speaking on the committee’s work, Hon. Enu clarified the status of the previous bill. “This bill, the last parliament in the eighth parliament, of course uh last parliament lapsed. The eighth parliament lapsed, it lapsed with all the bills before it, inclusive of the human sexual rights and family values bill,” he said.
He stressed that the current bill was not a mere continuation of the old one. “For us in the committee it’s a completely new bill. We approached the bill as a new bill that has to be considered by the committee. It wasn’t as if through the processes we were just going to adopt it, no,” he stated.
According to Hon. Enu, the committee adhered to full parliamentary procedure. “We had to take it through every stage of the process which we did. We engaged all the key stakeholders and we took on board suggestions and consents from all these uh key stakeholders,” he said.
He noted that some proposals from the consultations shaped the final draft. “At the end of the day some of the consents that were raised we noticed that they were quite legitimate,” he added.
The Tema West MP said he was taken aback by criticism from the Minority following the bill’s passage. “And it’s very very simple and I’m even surprised uh at the minority and and what they did,” he remarked.
Hon. Enu argued that amendments are a normal part of lawmaking. “To be fine. They will be the need to make amendments because law is very very dynamic. Sometimes as we enforce the law and practice the law that’s where we know where the challenges are and all that,” he explained.
Parliament passed the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2025, by voice vote on Friday after the committee recommended its adoption. The bill criminalizes “funding, sponsorship or promotion” of LGBTQ activities with three to five years’ imprisonment, retains up to three years for same-sex sexual acts, and introduces a “duty to report” clause.
