General News of Sunday, 10 March 2024

Source: www.ghanaweb.com

Prof Gadzekpo given 7-day ultimatum to pacify Nzema-land for claiming they encourage gays

Board Chair of the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Professor Audrey Gadzekpo Board Chair of the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Professor Audrey Gadzekpo

Six paramount chiefs of the Nzema-land have summoned the Board Chair of the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Professor Audrey Gadzekpo, to pacify their lands over some comments she made recently concerning gays, 3news.com reports.

It will be recalled that Prof. Audrey Gadzekpo, while speaking on Joy Newsfile on Saturday, March 2, 2024, claimed that some Ghanaian cultures, specifically Ga and Nzema, have homosexual practices embedded in them.

“The whole argument Mr Sam George advances, and it seems very logical that if you go into our history, because Kojo Besia is a coinage, it doesn’t mean that we practice it. Look, I have heard people who were against the bill but have admitted that when you look into some of our cultural practices, there are homosexual practices. It didn’t come from the West,” she stated.

Probed further on which specific Ghanaian cultures had traits of homosexual practices, Prof Gadzekpo pointed to the people of Ga and Nzema.

“Which one? Well, I was in a training, and somebody told us that when you look in… there are practices in Ga culture, there are practices in Nzema culture, for example, that sociologists have documented,” she stated.

In light of this, these six paramount chiefs organised a joint press conference at which they reportedly expressed their anger at the claims.

Chief of Lower Axim Area, Awulae Ati Brukusu III, speaking to the media and on behalf of the other chiefs, indicated that the people of Nzema-land, transcending from Ghana to Ivory Coast, are embarrassed, angry and disappointed with the comments made by the professor, demanding more from her.

“In fact, she just made a misleading statement that has created a lot of chaos and panic in the Nzema land. And people have been calling and asking… a whole paramount chief; what is all this embarrassment? As if she was joking but she was actually saying something to me. Some of the youth can easily say to us that if it’s a culture within our system then if you practice, it is not any sin that is against the traditional norms of the Nzema area.

"… Of course, it is totally no and it is not correct and it has never happened and it’ll not happen. Even the generation coming, it’ll not happen. Our ancestors never did that. I have been on my stool for the past 36 years and I have never even heard of such an issue,” he said.

He has, therefore, given Prof. Audrey Gadzekpo seven days to “come and meet us in the Western Region… As a matter of fact, if we have to go into the olden days, then she has to pacify each stool holder because it’s a big insult. She doesn’t respect us; she doesn’t care about us. At least, she should know who we are, what we are and how we are and not just be on TV publicly just because you are doing it for your own sake."

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