Can you marry off Despite’s daughter to a deity? – Schwarzenegger on 'Wulomo-child marriage' saga

Afia Schwarzenegger has attributed poverty as the motive behind the decision to hand over a 16-year-old girl for marriage to a deity.

Earlier reports suggested that the girl had been married to 63-year-old Nungua Wulomo.

Amidst the ongoing discussions online, Rev. Dr. Ankrah, the Director of Administration at the Office of the Gborbu Wulomo-Shitse, emphasized that the girl in question was specifically 'chosen' by their deity. He clarified that she is not married to the Wulomo but to the deity.

To buttress his point and prove that she is the ‘chosen one’, he cited some mysteries surrounding her birth.

Rev. Ankrah said she was stuck in her mother’s womb for two years, making the pregnancy a mysterious one.

He explained that after the 'young bride' was born, she remained seated for two years until the deity intervened, enabling her to stand and walk.

However, Afia Schwarzenegger thinks that if the girl’s mother had the financial capacity to fund a cesarean section, she wouldn’t have kept the baby in her womb for two years.

She wondered why such acts, which she described as primitive, are always forced on poor individuals and not persons from prominent families.

“This is an abuse; you have embarrassed that girl. You have abused that girl and poverty is the root cause of this. Can you marry off Osei Kwame Despite’s daughter to a deity, a spirit, or a 63-year-old? I heard people saying that her mother struggled to give birth to her so she resorted to seeking help from a spirit.

"If she had money, she would’ve gone to the hospital to explore other medical procedures of giving birth. If she had money, she would’ve done a cesarean section, and no matter the spirit holding her, the baby would come out," she fumed on TikTok.

The comedienne also stressed that it is about time Ghanaians embraced modernity and moved away from centering their lives around 'spirits and mystery.

“We should stop the myths. We are in a new world. We should stop embarrassing abusers. We should embrace science and stop running to spirits for anything or relating everything to spirits," she added.



Meanwhile, the Minister for Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Hon. Stephen Asamoah-Boateng, has pledged to investigate the matter and take the necessary measures.

Other institutions, like Africa Education Watch, have also urged the police to apprehend Gborbu Wulomo for unlawfully marrying an underage girl.

EB/BB