Member of Parliament for Ningo Prampram, Hon. Sam Nartey George, the lead advocate for the anti-LGBTQ+ bill has provided an account of how the United States Ambassador to Ghana, Stephanie Sullivan is employing different measures to impede the progress of the bill.
He revealed on Metro TV (October 14 edition of Good Morning Ghana) that the US ambassador has been engaging the Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin and one of the eight signatories to the bill, to have them withdraw their support for it.
Sam George said that the ambassador allegedly had a phone conversation with Alban Bagbin and the said colleague MP during which she threatened them with visa denials.
Describing it as ‘cheap blackmail,’ Sam George also detailed how the US Embassy in Ghana is targeting other proponents of the bill with visa denials.
He however warned, that the MPs will not be cowed into silence and will pass the bill irrespective of the pressure from external forces.
“As for the threats they’ve been coming from far and near. In fact, one of the ambassadors, a woman placed a phone call to the Speaker of Parliament and at least one signatory to the bill asking him to withdraw from it.
“That signatory to the bill is my senior in parliament who applied for a visa in that embassy and was refused. He’s had five years visas three times from that country but they refused him after they called him to resign.
“It shouldn’t come as a shock to anybody because the Americans use visas as cheap blackmail. But it is not going to cow any of us. Some members of the bill have had visa applications pending at the American Embassy.
“Because of the Covid-19 they are not giving general visas but there is a special dispensation for students – politicians and MPs fall within that category. Parliament has sent in a number of applications requesting dates for the submission of forms, what they’ve done is to decline to give a date,” Sam George said on Metro TV.
