The Convention Peoples’ Party (CPP) has called for the African Union (AU) to adopt a common position on the emerging threat of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Africa.

Professor Edmund Nminyem Delle, its Chairman and Leader, said “we need a collective position to withstand the threat and arm twisting tactics being adopted by some western powers to force this down our throat”.

He was speaking to the Ghana News Agency ahead of this year’s celebration of the AU Day.

He said as Africans commemorated the Day, “We must reflect and bring the issues strongly on the front burner of the AU agenda. Forces are gathering for and against LGBT, as Africans, we have our culture, traditions and norms which influence our way of life”.

Prof Delle reminded African Leaders and Governments to protect the integrity of the African.

“Our traditional, religious, civil society activities, parliamentarians, media, academia and professional bodies must join the debate and help policy makers adopt the necessary legislative reforms on the issues.”

Touching on the AU Day commemoration, he recounted how the first Congress of Independent African States, was held in Accra, Ghana on April 15, 1958.

This was convened by Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah where he called for an African Freedom Day.

Representatives from Egypt (then a constituent part of the United Arab Republic), Ethiopia, Ghana, Liberia, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia and the Union of the Peoples of Cameroon participated in the conference.

It showcased the progress of liberation movements in the continent and symbolized the determination of the people of Africa to free themselves from foreign domination and exploitation.

Prof Delle said although the Pan-African Congress had been working towards similar goals since its foundation in 1900, the Accra Conference was the first time such a meeting had taken place on African soil.

The meeting was notable in that it laid the basis for the subsequent meetings of Africa Heads of State and Government during the Casablanca Group and the Monrovia Group era, until the formation of the OAU in 1963.

Five years later, on May 25, 1963, representatives of 30 African nations met in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, hosted by Emperor Haile Selassie, and it was at this meeting tha the Organisation of African Unity was founded, with the initial aim to encourage the decolonisation of Angola, Mozambique, South Africa and Southern Rhodesia.

At the 1963 Addis Ababa meeting a Charter signed by all attendees, with the exception of Morocco and Africa Freedom Day was renamed Africa Liberation Day.

In 2002, the OAU was replaced by the AU and it was remained AU Day

Prof Delle urged the current political leaders to continue the freedom struggle under new and emerging threats - work together “as our founding fathers did and fight for Africa’s interest”.

He expressed excitement at the AU’s tagging of 2018 as African anti-corruption year and spelling out modalities for winning the fight against corruption.