Member of Parliament for Assin South, John Ntim Fordjour, has criticised the newly passed Anti-LGBTQ Bill, arguing that the legislation has been significantly weakened by several exemptions that make it largely ineffective.
The lawmaker contended that the revised Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill 2025, commonly referred to as the Anti-LGBTQ Bill, no longer serves the purpose for which it was originally introduced.
Speaking on Eyewitness News on Friday, May 29, Ntim Fordjour accused the government of turning the legislation into a symbolic exercise rather than a robust legal framework.
Also read: The Front pages: Saturday, 30th May, 2026 (Newspapers)
“Clearly, if this government did not want to pass the bill, they should have stayed away from it. What we have is not any biting law; it is just for politics and optics,” he stated.
The revised Anti-LGBTQ Bill provides exemptions for lawyers offering legal representation to persons identified as LGBT, journalists and media organisations reporting on LGBTQ-related matters, and health professionals providing medical, psychological, or counselling services.
According to the Assin South MP, these exemptions undermine efforts to curb what supporters of the legislation describe as the promotion of homosexuality.
“If they have exempted those who are legally involved and others connected to it, then who are they targeting? So long as Section 9 is concerned, which could deal with homosexuality promotion, the bill becomes counterproductive,” he argued.
His remarks followed Parliament’s passage of the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill 2025 on Friday, May 29, after extensive deliberations and consideration of proposed amendments.
The amendments generated strong opposition from the Minority Caucus, which maintained that the changes suggest the earlier version of the Anti-LGBTQ Bill submitted to former President Nana Akufo-Addo was flawed and not fit for purpose.
Minority members insist that the exemptions have diluted the legislation and weakened its ability to achieve its stated objectives.