Otiko Djaba must ‘stand up’ for Moesha Boduong – CNN’s Amanpour

CNN Anchor Christiane Amanpour has written to Ghanaians to desist from the public shaming of Moesha Bodoung over her candid views about her love life, and is calling on President Akufo-Addo and Gender Minister Otiko Djaba to “stand up” for Moesha.

Amanpour said “it was quite distressing to hear that one of our contributors, Moesha Boduong, has been the target of public shaming by the Ghanaian press and the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection.” MyNewsGH.com cited the article from CNN.

She said Moesha deserved the right to be speak up about her sexual life and love without fear, and called on President Akufo-Addo of Ghana and the minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection “to stand up for the rights of one of their own who was simply enjoying a carefree, boisterous and mostly humorous conversation with me.”

Moesha Bodoung told CNN in a recent interview that her motivation, just like other women in Ghana, for dating married men, is because the economy is tough.

According to her, “In Ghana, our economy is such a way that you need someone to take care of you. You can’t make enough money as a woman here. Because even when you want to get an apartment, in Ghana they take two years’ advance and I just started working where will I get money to pay?”.

CNN’s Christiane Amanpour asked her “are you basically telling me that you are having sex with this guy to pay your rent?” Moesha responded, “Because he can afford to take care of you. He takes care of me, my financials, my apartment, my car, my rent everything.”

Ghanaians didn’t take kindly to her interview.

Read excerpt of Amanpour’s article

It was quite distressing to hear that one of our contributors, Moesha Boduong, has been the target of public shaming by the Ghanaian press and the Ministry of Gender, Children, and SocialProtection. Numerous media outlets in Ghana have taken to villainizing this young woman based on an excerpt of the conversation included in a 1 minute, 30-second video of “Sex and Love.”



As the host and the namesake of this series, I feel compelled to speak up on behalf of our contributor. I want people to recognize Moesha’s right to speak up and the courage she showed by sharing such intimate details about her personal life.

As a woman and a journalist, I’m hurt and angry to see such an innocent woman condemned by the press and by many people on social media in this way. It’s to the point that Moesha is not sure she can return to Ghana safely. I am so surprised to see this happening in Accra, a city that has rightly got so much attention recently for being one of the most economically and politically successful capitals in Africa.

Indeed I was heartened while I was in Accra, listening to a speech by the President himself, defending the rights of the free press to report fully, accurately and fairly.

That is what we did, with help from the many wonderful Ghanaians who participated in this beautiful story. It was a range of women, young and mature, single, married, divorced, widowed, Christian, Muslim, Vodun, a bead seller, an OBGYN, even a market queen:



Everyone acknowledged that love in Accra is complex but no one judged the choices another woman makes in the pursuit of love and happiness. And in this city that calls itself the most religious in the world, we spoke to men, too, including the Archbishop of the Action Chapel megachurch who told us “We don’t put women down in our society. We don’t do that. I’m surrounded by women. The success of my ministry, many, many ways I can equate it to the women around me.”

I urge my colleagues in the Ghanaian press to reserve judgment for the whole episode, and for the people to understand that all must be seen in context, not judged on one excerpt.

I also respectfully urge the President of Ghana and the minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection to stand up for the rights of one of their own who was simply enjoying a carefree, boisterous and mostly humorous conversation with me.

I want women all over the world to know they can and should be able to talk about matters of sex and love without fear and without shame.