Buem Lawmaker Kofi Adams believes that the Supreme Court can determine the anti-gay bill case within one or two months.
To him, all the works on this bill have been done by stakeholders including Parliament. The Supreme Court, he explained, would have to look at the issues and determine whether the bill was properly passed or not.
Doing this should not take more than two months, he said.
“The Supreme Court can determine this case in a month or two…because we have gone through all the processes already,” he said on the Key Points on TV3 on Saturday, May 11.
He was reacting to a comment by Private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu who had asked Ghanaians to give the Supreme Court some time to determine the case.
Kpebu doubted that the apex court would finish hearing the case against the Anti-LGBTQI bill within seven months.
If the Supreme Court is unable to hear the case within seven months, then it means that the bill will die with this 8th parliament on 6th January 2025.
He said “The timelines are very tight because 6th January 2025 is very close, barely seven months.
“If you look at what goes into coming out with a decision in such a case, I have my doubts that we should be able to complete this in due course, seven months is a bit tight. It is likely that this case won’t be concluded within seven months, we are going on a legal vacation, 31st of July is the end of the legal year so August, September, October, and two weeks in November are part of our legal break.
“Because of the ramifications for us and the future of this nation generally, I think we should hasten slowly, give the Supreme Court some space, let them deliberate well so that when the decision comes out it will be well accepted. It appears we are just railroading them into saying that they should say the bill was properly passed and so the president should sign it. We don’t need a hasty decision that will not solve any problem. What is it that is happening currently that they must urgently finish?” he Kpebu said.
The Supreme Court adjourned the case against the anti-LGBTQI bill indefinitely.
The apex court on Wednesday, May 8 held the view that the documents presented to it by the Speaker of Parliament contained intemperate language. Hence they have directed the lawyers of the Speaker to file new documents.
Prior to adjournment, the court had dismissed the preliminary objection by the lawyer of the Speaker of Parliament, Thaddeus Sory in the case against the anti-LGBTQI bill.
When the court sat to hear the case which was carried live on television, Lawyers for broadcast journalist Richard Sky who filed the case, sought to amend one of the reliefs on the motion for injunction.
Lawyer for the Speaker of Parliament Thaddeus Sory objected to this.
He argued that he had already indicated in documents filed earlier that his side objected to how that relief had been couched and so allowing them to amend it would defeat his objection.
After hearing the arguments, the Justices of the Apex Court chaired by Chief Justice Gertrude Torkoornoo ruled that “our considered view is that the preliminary objection is unnecessary and does not seek to assist any process before this court. Every party has an inherent right to present the appropriate formulation of their reliefs or other process before the court to enable the court to determine the real matters in controversy. The objection is dismissed.”
The Chief Justice further told the lawyers of the speaker that “You have taken our time and energy for nothing.”
Ghanaian Journalist, Richard Dela Sky, and Researcher Dr. Amanda Odoi are set to appear before the Supreme Court, Wednesday, May 8, 2024, to move their respective lawsuits challenging the passage of the anti-LGBTQ+ Bill.
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