The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has stated that the legalisation of same-sex marriage will never happen in his time as President.
According to the President, “I have said this before, and let me, in conclusion, stress again that it will not be under the presidency of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo that same-sex marriage will be legalised in Ghana. It will never happen in my time as President.”
President Akufo-Addo made this known on Saturday, 27th February 2021, when he attended the Installation and Enthronement ceremony of Rt. Rev Dr. Cyril Kobina Ben-Smith, as the 2nd Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Ghana, at Asante-Mampong, in the Ashanti Region.
This is not the first time the President has publicly made comments about the issue of same-sex marriage in Ghana.
It will be recalled that on 9th August 2018, at the 2018 Synod of the Global Evangelical Church, he stated that “let me assure that this Government has no plans to change the law on same-sex marriage. We have no authority, and we will not seek any authority to do so”.
With historical records indicating that the Anglican Church “has probably been continuously present on Ghanaian soil longer than any”, the President indicated that the Church, from humble beginnings, has grown to become one of the largest congregations in the country.
“Successive priests and congregations are to be applauded for this, and for the many years of service and fellowship to Mother Ghana. The Anglican Church has been a good example of what it means to love one another and give cheerfully to those in need, and I have no doubt that this legacy of ministry and compassion will long grace this Church,” he added.
President Akufo-Addo, thus, urged members of the Church to rise to their religious responsibilities, and stimulate the desired motivational spirit of renewal and transformation towards effective nation-building.
With the COVID-19 vaccinations set to begin soon, the President observed that it is vital that the all Ghanaians continue to adhere to the COVID-19 safety protocols.
“The Church must do its part to help enforce these protocols, because they remain the weapons of our fight to defeat the virus. As your President, I assure you that I will continue to provide the requisite leadership necessary in helping our country to emerge from this relatively unscathed,” he added.
With the the first strategic move of the new Archbishop being the establishment of a National Provincial Secretariat for the Church in Accra, “which I believe is very necessary for the Church, I am, to this end, making a personal donation of one hundred thousand cedis (GH¢100,000) towards its construction”.
Touching on the establishment of the Internal Province of Ghana (IPG), the President stressed that it could not have come at a better time, as it will help strengthen Anglicanism in Ghana.
“The Province is expected to put up strategies and policies to unify members of the Anglican Communion in Ghana and ensure its growth, and you can count on my Government's support in its sustenance. I believe it is for good reason that the President of the Republic, at this critical period in the Church’s history, is a proud Anglican,” he added.
Congratulating the new Archbishop, the Rt. Rev. Dr Cyril Kobina Ben-Smith, on his assumption of office, President Akufo-Addo stated that “I look forward to the new measures and strategies that will project the image of the Anglican Communion in Ghana by affirming stronger and tighter collaboration with the State. Archbishop, we will support you in this endeavour, and I will urge all members of the Communion here in Ghana to be united in their support of you.”
