Former Defence Minister and Bimbilla MP Dominic Nitiwul has called on the government to clarify the status of Ghana’s anti-LGBTQ+ Bill, particularly whether it was formally transmitted from Parliament to the President.
Mr. Nitiwul said the Majority Chief Whip, Rockson Dafeamekpor, must explain to Ghanaians whether the bill was subsequently transmitted to the President, and, if it reached the Presidency, what concerns the President has raised about the legislation.
“If it was transmitted to the President, then the President is enjoined by law to sign it. If he doesn’t want to sign it, he needs to have written to Parliament with his comments,” Mr. Nitiwul said.
Speaking on the KeyPoints with Alfred Ocansey on August 8, he questioned why there appeared to be conflicting positions on the status of the bill, saying the government must provide clear information to end the speculation surrounding the matter.
According to him, the lack of clarity risks creating room for interpretations such as those offered by private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu.
“I want to support Martin Kpebu asking him whether the bill was transmitted to the President. Was it given to the President by Parliament?” he asked.
Mr. Nitiwul, however, rejected suggestions that the movement of a minister from one portfolio to another should be interpreted as punishment.
He described Mahama Ayariga’s nomination to the Local Government Ministry as a powerful one, arguing that the minister will have oversight across a broad section of the government system.
“He’s not been punished, not at all. In fact, if there’s anything, someone will say he’s been promoted,” Mr. Nitiwul said.
He instead suggested that the ministerial changes could be part of preparations for the next general elections.
“I’d rather want to think that the President and the party are positioning themselves more for election purposes,” he said.
Mr. Nitiwul said the expected emergence of a new presidential candidate and other political considerations could influence the positioning of key figures within government.
Mr. Nitiwul also disclosed that he had received information well ahead of the reshuffle that the current Defence Minister would be appointed to the position.
He said his sources had indicated that the President was looking for someone he trusted and had confidence in to head the Defence Ministry.
According to him, the name of the current Defence Minister had repeatedly surfaced in discussions about the expected reshuffle from as far back as July, 2026.
Mr. Nitiwul said he had even informed some people of his expectation before the appointment was formally announced.
He also clarified earlier comments concerning Dr. Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings, explaining that he had not considered her a contender for the substantive Defence Ministry.
“My intelligence and our sources told us that Dr. Zanetor had no chance to go to the Ministry of Defence,” he said.
Mr. Nitiwul insisted that his position was not based on any hostility towards Dr. Agyeman-Rawlings, but on information he had received about the President’s preferred choice.
He said he had been confident that the current Defence Minister was the person the President intended to appoint and that the reshuffle only confirmed what his sources had indicated earlier.
Mr. Nitiwul maintained that some of his information was based on sources he considers authoritative, although he declined to disclose the identities of those sources.
By Christabel Success Treve
