Sam George makes wild allegations against Akufo-Addo, Attorney-General over dismissal of Dafeamekpor's suit

The Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram has reacted to the dismissal of the mandamus application filed by Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, the Member of Parliament for South Dayi, to compel Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin and President Akufo-Addo to act on the Anti-LGBT+ Bill within seven days by an Accra High Court.

In a post shared on X on Monday, April 29, 2024, Sam Nartey George accused President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of conniving with the Office of the Attorney General and the judiciary to get the suit thrown out by the High Court.

The MP, who said he is not surprised by the court's dismissal of the suit, hinted at a meeting at the Office of the President on April 22, where the decision on the suit was made.

“I am not surprised at this ruling. It is a contrived verdict predetermined between @NAkufoAddo, the Attorney-General's Office, and the Judiciary.

“I dare them to challenge me on this. The President should remember the meeting in his office on Monday 22nd April. Enough of the codswallop, Mr. President,” he wrote.

When asked to provide evidence of his claim by a social media user, Sam George replied: “I just dropped evidence of a meeting with a dare and dared them to deny. Are you a free SHS graduate because your understanding of basic grammar is suspect”.

The High Court threw out Dafeamekpor’s suit on April 29, 2024.

According to a report by 3news.com, the judge presiding over the case, Justice Ellen Lordina Serwaa Mireku, dismissed the mandamus application using her discretionary powers.

She explained that two suits were filed by private citizens -Prof. Amanda Odoi and Richard Dela Sky- at the Supreme Court of Ghana had direct implications on Dafeamekpor's mandamus application and hence declined the MP's reliefs.

Background:

Dafeamekpor applied to the High Court to compel the Speaker of Parliament to submit the Anti-LGBT+ Bill to the President within seven days.

The plaintiff also asked the court to compel the President to receive the anti-gay bill and either sign or indicate to Parliament if he cannot assent to it within the same period.

The application for judicial review in the nature of mandamus, which was filed on March 22, 2024, was premised on the grounds that the Parliament of Ghana had duly passed the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill in compliance with Article 106 (1), (2), (3), (4), (5) and (6) of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana.

The legislator also argued that the bill "must be transmitted to and received by the President of Ghana for assent or otherwise, in accordance with Article 106 (7) of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana."

About the passage of the anti-gay bill:

The Parliament of Ghana, on Wednesday, February 28, 2024, passed the Promotion of Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, widely known as the Anti-LGBT+ Bill.

The bill, currently awaiting presidential assent, proscribes Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) activities and criminalizes their promotion, advocacy, and funding.

Persons caught in these acts will be subjected to a six-month to three-year jail term, with promoters and sponsors facing a three to five-year jail term.

The bill will now require presidential assent to come into force within 7 days. However, if President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo refuses to assent to the bill, parliament, by a two-third majority vote, can approve it into law.

The Office of the President has ordered the Parliament of Ghana not to attempt to transmit the Anti-gay Bill till two legal actions against it in the Supreme Court are determined.

See the MP's post below:

I am not surprised at this ruling. It is a contrived verdict predetermined between @NAkufoAddo, the Attorney-General's Office, and the Judiciary. I dare them to challenge me on this. The President should remember the meeting in his office on Monday 22nd April. Enough of the… pic.twitter.com/H5Xvtfjo6T

— Sam 'Dzata' George 🦁🇬🇭 (@samgeorgegh) April 29, 2024