The Judicial Service of Ghana has refuted the assertion that the Supreme Court and Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo are deliberately delaying the suits filed against the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, on the passage of the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Act, commonly known as the anti-gay bill.

In response to a petition for the Supreme Court to expedite the hearing of the cases against the passage of the anti-gay bill, the Judicial Service indicated that the parties involved in the suit are those delaying the hearing.

It indicated that parties in the suits must file their statements before the court sits, which has not been done, onuaonline.com reports.

"For the Supreme Court to hear any case, the parties are required to file their respective pleadings in the form of a statement of case within the timelines provided for by the Supreme Court Rules, 1996 (CJ 16).

"As the two communications issued earlier stated, Parliament and the parties have not complied with the requirements that allow a trial of the case raised by the Plaintiffs," the statement from the Judicial Service is quoted to have indicated.

The service went on to admonish all parties to file their pleadings for the hearing of the cases by the Supreme Court to commence.

"Attach the urgency to this case as shown in the petition and file the necessary processes for the cases to be heard," it added.

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

The bill, currently awaiting presidential assent, outlaws Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) activities and criminalises 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 now requires presidential assent to come into force within seven days. However, if President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo refuses to assent to the bill, Parliament, by a two-thirds majority vote, can pass it into law.

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

BAI/AE

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