No plans to change law on same-sex marriage: Ghana President on speculations to legalize homosexuality

The Government of Ghana has no plans to change the law on same sex marriage, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has stated.

“We have no authority to do so and we will not seek any authority to do so,” President Akufo-Addo added.

This was in a sharp rebuttal to speculations and allegations made by sections of the public, including some religious leaders of government’s intention to legalize same sex marriage in the country, when he joined the Global Evangelical Church at its 2018 Synod at the University of Ghana, Legon on August 9, 2018.

The President also reminded the church of calls to tax church income and explained that the calls to impose taxes on church income were not without foundation and pointed to the opulence and seemingly lavish lifestyle of some men of God, adding that once a person entered into the wealthy and prosperity sphere, he or she necessarily slipped into the tax category.

He, therefore, called for a public discourse on whether the church should pay tax or not.

President Akufo-Addo told the congregation that from the practical to the spiritual, the church could not operate on a different play field of the society and urged the church to promote the study of subjects that equipped the members, especially the youth, to acquire jobs to develop their capacity to compete in the modern world.

The President said while the youth were encouraged to hear the call of the Lord to become priests, prophets, preachers, they should also be spurred on to become engineers, scientists, carpenters, masons, plumbers, mathematicians teachers, tailors and other professionals. “We must have a properly functioning society to be able to worship in peace,” he added.

Furthermore, he said, even though he believed in miracles, the over concentration of it by some pastors had made it difficult for government to convince the public, especially the youth, to acquire skills and work hard to build up global businesses for the betterment of the nation.

President Akufo-Addo noted that the same enthusiasm that the church could employ to grow and increase its numbers, could also be marshalled to help to build Ghana, and urged the church to  join hands with government to build a happy and prosperous country, which, he said, was well within our reach.

He said, he was, however, fully aware of the influence of the church, especially with the dramatic difference it made in education, health and sanitation.

He recounted the contribution of the church to the nation’s development— leading the drive for development, as they built and ran schools and hospitals, and leading the campaign for good sanitation which they preached and practiced.