Accra: Ghanaian media personality, Kwaku Sintim-Misa (KSM), has publicly disagreed with the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, over his call for the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, commonly referred to as the anti-LGBTQ+ Bill, to be reconsidered. KSM voiced his opposition during a broadcast on June 4, 2026, where he argued that the authority of the Deputy Speaker during parliamentary sessions is constitutionally valid, and thus, decisions made in the Speaker's absence should stand.
According to Ghana Web, KSM emphasized that the country's Constitution permits a Deputy Speaker to assume the full responsibilities of the Speaker when necessary. He stated, "Mr Speaker, the role of the Speaker is in the constitution and when the Speaker is not there and the Deputy Speaker is in charge, according to the constitution, he becomes the Speaker. He has the power of the Speaker, he has the might of the Speaker, and his words and his actions and his deeds carry the impact of a Speaker."
KSM questioned the need to revisit decisions made by the Deputy Speaker, asserting that unless there has been a legal amendment, the decisions should remain unaffected. "And Mr Speaker, you should know this, unless the law has changed and I haven't been informed that the only person who can be a speaker and who is authorized to make decisions is Alban Bagbin. Tell me and I'll understand, then I'll get you off your back and I apologise for my ignorance," he added.
KSM expressed his willingness to have his interpretation challenged in court but maintained his stance against the Speaker's directive. He invited legal experts to test his interpretation in the Supreme Court and promised to apologize if proven wrong. "But Bagbin, I beg to differ. Maybe lawyers and other people, you can go to the Supreme Court and argue what I've said and test the interpretation from the Supreme Court. When it comes out that I'm lying, I will use the same platform to apologize," he stated.
Further, KSM argued that the bill's passage should not be invalidated solely because Bagbin was not presiding at the time. "But as I stand here now, Bagbin, I think you have erred in saying that the proceedings should begin again because it was passed and you were not the one in the chair," he indicated.
He reiterated that decisions approved by Parliament are valid unless procedural issues, such as quorum, are involved. "So, I am saying that I beg to differ because if the argument, as we've been hearing, is that because you were not the one sitting there and that thing was passed, it is no longer valid, No. According to the Constitution, when a decision has been made and it's passed, it's passed. Parliament has passed it," he further argued.
Lastly, KSM noted that while quorum concerns could be relevant, he had not heard such issues raised regarding the Speaker's call for reconsideration. "So, if you some other arguments like the quorum that is fine but from what I was hearing I didn't hear anything about quorum. I just heard he wasn't present and parliament rushed to pass something and he believes it is important there should be reconsideration," KSM said.
His comments come in response to Speaker Alban Bagbin's instructions for Parliament to revisit the bill's passage process, following concerns about how the bill was passed. Bagbin has called for further engagement between the Majority and Minority leadership on the matter.