The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, says Parliament can still revisit the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2025—popularly known as the Anti-LGBTQ+ Bill—even after its passage.
According to him, the House retains the authority to move a motion to rescind or review its earlier decision on the Bill. His remarks follow the passage of the legislation, after which he has called for further reconsideration.
Speaking during a courtesy call by the Supreme Court 150th Anniversary Planning Committee on Thursday, June 11, Mr Bagbin dismissed suggestions that Parliament is functus officio and therefore unable to revisit the matter.
“The recent debate where some lawyers came out strongly to say that by the Constitution, once a law is passed on the floor, Parliament is functus officio. It’s not the law,” he said.
He explained that the legislative process is not fully concluded until the Bill is submitted to the President for assent, adding that Parliament still has room to review its decisions.
“Because we have what we call a passage process before you send it to the President for assent. And that process gives the opportunity for Parliament to reflect on what it has passed,” he stated.
Mr Bagbin further noted that Parliament often revisits legislation to correct inconsistencies or errors, describing it as part of a “reconsideration stage.”
“And on many occasions, we usually identify some inconsistencies or errors. Then we go back to the House… we use a motion of rescission to rescind the decision of having read the Bill a third time,” he explained.
He stressed that it is therefore not correct to argue that Parliament cannot revisit a Bill once it has been passed.
His comments come after he directed Parliament to reconsider the already passed Bill following consultations with leadership aimed at building broader consensus on the legislation.
Earlier, on Tuesday, June 2, the Speaker called for further engagement between the Majority and Minority leadership, expressing concern about the process that led to the Bill’s passage.
Mr Bagbin said he was surprised the Bill was fully passed on Friday, May 29, noting that he had expected Parliament to proceed only to the consideration stage.
He maintained that due to its sensitivity and the national debate surrounding it, the Bill requires wider consultation and consensus among stakeholders.
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