‘I won’t return to Parliament if anti-gay bill isn’t passed’ – Emmanuel Bedzrah

The Member of Parliament for Ho West, Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzrah, has said he will not return to Parliament if the Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill is not passed and assented to before the next election.

Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on October 29, 2025, the MP said his position is driven by moral conviction, not political ambition.

“If it’s not assented to, I will not come back to Parliament again. This is a live studio, and I’m saying it. I’ve even told my colleagues and everybody that if it’s not passed and assented to, I’ll not come back. What do I come to do? If I don’t have a moral principle to my generations unborn, then what am I doing?” he said.

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Bedzrah described his support for the controversial legislation, which seeks to criminalise LGBTQ+ activities and promote what its sponsors call “proper human sexual rights and family values,” as central to his public service.

“That is my whole life. We must defend our principles. Some of us are in Parliament not just for politics but for the moral and social advancement of this country,” he indicated.

The Ho West MP, one of the bill’s eight sponsors, also accused the Minority Leader, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, of being “untruthful” about past efforts to amend the bill.

“He has never come to us as sponsors to propose any amendment or even hold discussions on it. I’m surprised that the same person now stands in Parliament advocating for the bill. What kind of double tongue is this?” he asked.

Bedzrah added that he and other sponsors, including John Ntim Fordjour and Samuel Nartey George, worked closely on the bill’s progress in Parliament.

“We meet as eight members to agree on how to go about this business. When he brought those amendments, he lost miserably,” he explained.

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For Bedzrah, however, the issue transcends politics; it is a matter of moral conviction.

He insisted that if the bill does not receive presidential assent, his 16-year parliamentary career will come to an end.