Paul Boama Sefa, a private citizen based in the Ashanti Region of Ghana, has filed a lawsuit against the Speaker of Parliament and the Attorney General in the High Court.
Sefa claims that the two officials have violated certain provisions of the Ghanaian constitution with regards to the Human Rights and Family Values Bill, 2021.
Sefa alleges that despite the bill having financial implications for the consolidated fund, it was not presented to parliament with a fiscal impact analysis document.
The Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee has already urged the House to pass the bill into law, but Sefa’s lawsuit may cause some delays.
Sefa argues that the Public Financial Management Act requires any bill to be accompanied by a fiscal impact analysis when presented to parliament. He claims that the Human Rights and Family Values Bill does not have this analysis attached to it.
Sefa also cited the Attorney General’s memo to parliament, which raises the same concern about the lack of a fiscal impact analysis.
In his lawsuit, Sefa is seeking to restrain the Speaker of Parliament and his deputies from proceeding with any processes related to the bill until a fiscal impact analysis is conducted.
The Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee had addressed the Attorney General’s concern about the lack of analysis in its final report to parliament, stating that amendments to the bill would take care of the issue.
Sefa’s lawsuit highlights the importance of following due process when passing bills into law in accordance with Ghana’s constitution.
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