Leading member of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Gabby Otchere-Darko has waded into the conversation surrounding the controversial Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill also known as the anti-LGBTQ bill which was recently passed by Parliament.

In his view, the activities of the LGBTQ community pose no threat to Ghana's family values in comparison to the activities of mistresses and paramours of married men and women, also known as side chicks and side dudes.

According to him, "the biggest threat to family values in our society is caused by side chicks and side dudes" as they break homes.

His analysis is that family values cannot thrive in broken homes. In his view, hypocritical individuals have chosen their greater demon, and as such, "our MPs don’t care."

Parliament on Wednesday, February 28, passed the Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill also known as the anti-LGBTQ bill after three years following its introduction.

During Wednesday’s Parliamentary session Majority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin sought to make amendments to the bill during the second consideration stage citing human right infringement.

However, the Minority rejected his request, prompting the Speaker to push for the third consideration stage,.

Speaker Alban Bagbin put the bill to a voice vote and the ayes had it.

As it stands now, Parliament has tabled the bill to the President's desk for President Akufo-Addo to assent to the bill to become law.

The anti-LGBTQ+ bill aims to criminalize LGBTQ+ activities in Ghana. It proposes strict penalties, including imprisonment, for individuals engaged in activities related to homosexuality and LGBTQ+ advocacy.

Additionally, the bill seeks to prohibit the promotion of LGBTQ+ rights, organizations, and events in Ghana.

Prior to its passage, there had been several amendments to the bill. After deliberation, Parliament decided that the minimum custodial sentence has been set at three years, with a maximum of five years for promoters and sympathisers.

Additionally, individuals caught directly engaging in these activities will face a minimum sentence of six months, extendable to a maximum of three years.

Ghana is among many African countries that are working to rid LGBTQ activities in the society. Uganda enacted one of the world’s harshest anti-gay laws in May, which calls for the death penalty for certain same-sex acts.

Following this, the country faced sanctions from international communities. The U.S. imposed a first round of visa restrictions on Ugandan officials in response to the law in June, and the World Bank halted new lending to the country in August.

The concern now is Ghana could face similar sanctions and be blocked from receiving financial aid from countries that uphold LGBTQ rights. But Parliamentarians have noted that Ghana is poised to withstand whatever pro-LGBTQ countries throw at them.

Already, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has described the passage of bill as "profoundly disturbing."

A portion of the UN Human Rights statement read “I call for the bill not to become law. I urge the Ghanaian Government to take steps to ensure everyone can live free from violence, stigma and discrimination, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Consensual same-sex conduct should never be criminalized.”