Ali Musah
The war on gays and lesbians in Ghana seems to be far from over, with the latest to be discovered being a budding dancehall artiste.
The people of Ashaiman near Tema in the Greater Accra Region were dealt a heavy blow when it came to light that Ali Musah, a talented artiste whose style has been likened to that of Stone Bwoy, was found to be gay.
The young man was said to have, in the heat of an altercation with his gay partner, blurted out a remark that clearly indicated his sexual orientation, to the hearing of third parties, who pounced on them immediately and starting administering the street brand of justice to gays.
The two gentlemen were rescued by a police patrol team, who remarked that they had no evidence that the two were gays for which they could be arraigned before court.
After they were released by the Police, the people of Ashaiman who had besieged the premises of the Police Station, descended on them for the second time, which forced the Police to detain them once again for their own safety until the crowd had left, amidst promises to hunt them down.
Ali Musah is the son of Alhaji Musah Ojaray, a prominent member of the Ashaiman community and Imam of a local mosque.
It was learnt that following the incident, the Imam failed to show up to lead prayers for almost a week, perhaps due to stigmatization as well as fear of being attacked himself for raising a homosexual.
Section 104 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) makes it an offence in Ghana to engage in homosexuality, with the law describing the act as “unnatural carnal knowledge”. Indeed the new Bill in Parliament, which is even more strict on gay practices, seems to have gained the approval and support of Ghanaians in general.