Oye Lithur must be rejected - Presby Moderator
Presby Church Moderator Prof. Emmanuel Martey is asking Parliament not to approve the nomination of Nana Oye Lithur as Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection.
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He says that her stance on homosexuality and lesbianism is very dangerous to the moral health of the society.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show
Thursday, the Moderator said that homosexuality, which he accused Nana
Oye Lithur of promoting in the past, is morally wrong and its acceptance
must not be entertained.
Answering a number of questions on her
views on gay rights before the Appointments Committee on Wednesday,
Nana Oye Lithur said “my stand on the actual practice of gay and
lesbianism is personal and the issue of homosexuality is a societal
issue which I believe our society should discuss, debate and deliberate
upon and come to a conclusion as to whether they want to accept it or
not. My focus is on defending the rights of everyone who finds himself
or herself in Ghana.”
Prof Martey said that he expected Mrs.
Lithur to be honest in answering the Committees questions, but as far as
he is concerned, she was rather evasive, dishonest and inconsistent.
The
enraged Presby Moderator went on to call the human rights advocate a
coward whose submissions before the Parliamentary Committee were
disgraceful.
He asked why the minister-designate avoided giving
pointed answers and standing by her previous views on the subject if she
believed “what she stands for is good and will help Ghana”.
“…Oye Lithur was lying yesterday…She cannot speak a simple truth,” he claimed, adding that, “we need leaders of integrity.”
Prof
Martey charged that the president’s nominee for the ministry, which is
intended to protect children, is not qualified for the post because she
lacks integrity.
But human rights lawyer Prof Ken Attafuah
disagreed. He said the Constitution guarantees the fundamental human
rights of every individual irrespective of the person’s sexual
orientation.
He quoted Article 17(1) of the 1992 Constitution
which says: “All persons shall be equal before the law (2) A person
shall not be discriminated against on grounds of gender, race, colour,
ethnic origin, religion, creed, social or economic status" to ground
his argument.
He further explained that “The rights, duties,
declarations and guarantees relating to the fundamental human rights and
freedoms specifically mentioned in this Chapter shall not be regarded
as excluding others not specifically mentioned which are considered to
be inherent in a democracy and intended to secure the freedom and
dignity of man”.
Therefore if a person is gay, the person’s rights must be protected, he insisted.
Prof Ataffuah saw nothing wrong with the position taken by Nana Oye Lithur, saying she was only upholding the constitution.
He
said the minister-designate stated clearly at her vetting that she was
not going to promote homosexuality even if she also added that she will
protect the rights of all people including homosexuals.
That, he maintained, is Oye Lithur’s “obligation as a protector for the rights of marginalized people…”
Source: myjoyonline.com