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LGBTQI Office in Ghana: Government must act swiftly- Della Sowah
It has become the thorny topic in the country for some time now, after it emerged that the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Transgender and Queer Intersex Rights (LGBTQI) movement had opened its office in Ghana.
Against this backdrop, some civil society organisations, religious bodies and individuals have criticised the move, saying it should not be entertained.
The Member of Parliament for the people of Kpando, Della Sowah, has called on the government to as a matter of urgency act in compliance with the laws of the country.
According to her, whilst Ghanaian culture embraces polygamy which some cultures frown on, the cultural and moral fibre of the country frowns on LGBT. Our culture must be respected and such practices, must not be entertained by any government.
Della Sowah is of the view that past governments have made their stance on LGBTQI clear, and expressed disapproval for it.
For this reason, she believes that it would be prudent for the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to make his stance clear, and lead the country in the right direction.
She further called on the government to investigate how the office came about and shut it down immediately and apply the laws to curb the growing advocacy in the country.
LGBTQI+ Rights Ghana has opened an administrative office in Tesano, a suburb of Accra, a move which has raised a lot of public uproar.
The Member of Parliament for Nsawam Adoagyiri, Frank Annoh Dompreh, has expressed concern over delays in the release of the District Assemblies Common Fund, warning that the situation is stalling development across the country.
On his facebook page, he described as a matter of urgent national importance, the Minority Chief Whip pointed to what he sees as a growing crisis of unpaid contractors, abandoned projects, and halted infrastructure works in many districts.
He noted that several communities are grappling with half completed schools, unfinished health facilities, abandoned markets, deteriorating roads, and stalled sanitation projects.
According to him, many contractors who have executed projects for district assemblies have not been paid, forcing some construction firms to demobilise from sites while workers lose their jobs.
He stressed that the District Assemblies Common Fund is not a discretionary allocation but a constitutional requirement under Article 252 of the 1992 Constitution, intended to support development at the local level.
In his view, years of delayed releases and accumulated arrears have weakened district development financing and disrupted projects meant to improve living conditions in communities.
He further argued that some payments made in recent years were largely the settlement of old debts rather than funding for new or ongoing projects, a situation he believes has affected contractor confidence and local economic activity.
He described the issue as more than a budgetary challenge, characterising it as a development emergency and a governance concern.
He therefore urged the appropriate authorities to pay outstanding DACF arrears, settle contractors who have completed their work, and ensure that transfers to districts are automatic and predictable.
He maintained that decentralisation can only succeed when district assemblies receive adequate and timely funding to carry out development projects.
He emphasised that stalled projects directly affect ordinary citizens, since they rely on such infrastructure for education, healthcare, transportation, sanitation, and economic activities.
He called for renewed attention to grassroots development, insisting that national progress should not be concentrated only in major cities but extended to all communities.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Richard Appiah, the footballer who killed two children and stored part of their bodies in a fridge at Abesim in the Bono Region in 2021 has been handed a lifetime sentence.
This was after a five member panel of judges at the Accra High Court returned a verdict of guilty against the convict.
Appiah, 32, also a draughtsman would spend the rest of his life in prison after he was convicted of murder.
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BY MALIK SULLEMANA
