Oliver Barker-Vormawor, a lawyer and political analyst, has strongly criticized certain prominent NPP opposition politicians who are now urging President Mahama to sign the recently expired Family Value Bill, commonly referred to as the anti-LGBTQ+ Bill.
Barker-Vormawor questioned the practicality of their demands, sarcastically inquiring which version of the bill they are referring to, given its expiration.
He further remarked on the absurdity of expecting the President to sign a bill that no longer exists in its legislative form, rhetorically asking if they expect him to sign “thin air.”
“Under Ghanaian constitutional law, when a bill is passed by parliament, the President has 7 days after the bill is presented to him to sign the bill or veto it.
“He may also refer it to the Council of State for advice. After the Family Values Bill was passed, the President refused to accept the Bill when it was presented to him”.
Oliver Barker-Vormawor
Barker-Vormawor highlighted that former President Akufo-Addo had previously asserted that the issue surrounding the Family Value Bill was under judicial review, implying that the matter was pending in court.
He lamented that despite there being no court order explicitly prohibiting Parliament from forwarding the bill to him for assent, Akufo-Addo still chose not to act on it.
Barker-Vormawor emphasized that this refusal occurred even in the absence of any legal constraints, suggesting that the former President’s reluctance was a deliberate decision rather than one dictated by judicial intervention.
This, he argued, reflected a lack of political will to engage with the bill during Akufo-Addo’s tenure.
Akufo-Addo’s Inaction on Family Value Bill Criticized
Furthermore, Oliver Barker-Vormawor pointed out that on December 18, the Supreme Court dismissed the lawsuit filed by Richard Dela Sky, which had been a significant point of contention regarding the progression of the Family Value Bill.
He emphasized that from December 18 to January 6, there were no legal obstacles preventing former President Akufo-Addo from assenting to the bill if he had chosen to do so.
Barker-Vormawor suggested that during this period, the former President had ample opportunity to sign the bill into law, indicating that his inaction was a matter of choice rather than necessity.
This, he argued, underscores a deliberate decision by Akufo-Addo not to engage with the legislation despite having the legal clearance to proceed.
“However having failed to do so, the term of the Parliament that passed that bill expired; and the Bill it passed, as well as all Bills in consideration, expired. Nana Addo, intended for the Bill to expire and it did expire.
“Meaning the process can only be started afresh if that’s what the Sponsors want. Every Parliament is a new Parliament”.
Oliver Barker-Vormawor
Barker-Vormawor observed that during the entire 18-day window from December 18 to January 6, when former President Akufo-Addo had the opportunity to assent to the Family Value Bill, there was complete silence from government MPs, including Vice President Bawumia and other senior NPP figures.
He noted that none of these high-ranking officials made any public statements or exerted any visible pressure on the President to sign the bill, despite their purported support for it.
Barker-Vormawor suggested that this lack of action or advocacy from the NPP leadership during this crucial period indicated a lack of genuine commitment to the bill, raising questions about their true intentions and priorities.
Corruption Education Suggested as Pilot for Family Values Proposal
Meanwhile, the political commentator also weighed in on President John Mahama’s proposal to incorporate family values into school curriculums.
He suggested that, as a starting point, the focus should be on education about corruption, proposing it as a pilot program to test the effectiveness of this approach.
“President Mahama says we should begin to teach family values in school so our Children do not grow up gay or accepting of different sexual orientations”.
Oliver Barker-Vormawor
Barker-Vormawor remarked that this could serve as a proof of concept, questioning whether it is possible to teach students not to engage in corrupt practices through school education.
Alternatively, he suggested that the idea could be further explained or expanded upon to better understand its potential impact.
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