By Kwame Okoampa-Ahoofe, Jr., Ph.D.
The Presbyterian missionary station at Abokobi, in the Greater-Accra Region, is one of the oldest of its kind in the country. And so when the allegation regarding one of its clerics having sexually molested at least seven young men, ages between 20 and 28 years old, hit the news headlines, I was naturally taken aback. For, we are talking about hard-earned reputations here, both institutionally and personally (See "Gay Case Has Marred Our Reputation - Presby Church" The Independent/ JoyOnline.com 5/17/13).
In the main, Rev. Kusi-Kyere has been accused of "massaging the penises of some juveniles who visited him in his office." We must promptly point out that these are only allegations, as serious as they may seem. What this means is that the accused ought to be afforded the proverbial benefit of the doubt until he is either proven guilty by a legitimately constituted court of law, or duly cleared of these charges. We must also quickly add that whatever the outcome of the case, which is also, reportedly, being handled by the criminal justice authorities, neither the accused nor his alleged victims' lives would ever be the same.
At any rate, what has made these allegations appear to be destructive, or marring, of the longstanding reputation of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG), may largely have to do with the fact that in recent years, the last two Moderators, or Spiritual Heads, of the Church, including the current one, have launched a hitherto unprecedented liturgical crusade against gay, lesbian and transsexual cultural existence. Now, it appears, they have a real Tar-Baby on their hands in the fearful emanation of one of their own.
In the past, these clerics would have quickly encircled the proverbial wagon and quietly and domestically resolved matters. Unfortunately, now it is altogether a more intrusive global village. For me, as the grandson and great-grandson of pioneers and prominent members of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, and one who was born and raised in a Manse, or a Presbyterian Minister's House, I have not been inspired with the same level of awe that appears to have made it rather difficult for Dr. Emmanuel Acheampong, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the PCG, to fully and unreservedly, albeit sadly, appreciate the stark fact that fundamentally speaking, the accused, Rev. Kusi-Kyere, is human and incurably prone towards moral turpitude, degradation and perversion like each and every one of us.
I must also pointedly beg to vehemently disagree with Ms. Irene Oppong, the Public Relations Officer of the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU), that the crimes of which Rev. Kusi-Kyere stands accused are merely one of "indecent assault and not gay, rape or unnatural carnal knowledge." To be certain, going by the laws of the country, they are all of the preceding combined. There is a striking element of homosexuality because the participants are all males. There is also an unmistakable element of "rape," of forcible sexual engagement involving unwanted masturbation; then also, the 1992 Republican Constitution of Ghana defines homosexual intercourse as "unnatural carnal knowledge."
I am, however, not interested in the moral aspect of the preceding forms of sexual expression. Rather, I am more interested in the chances of Rev. Kusi-Kyere receiving a fair and impartial trial. Partly, this is because all the alleged victims are of the age of discretion or capable of making the independent decision of whether to voluntarily engage in the alleged sexual acts with the accused or promptly reject the same; unless, of course, any such mitigating circumstances as a mental and/or physical disability can also be clearly established as having played a role in such alleged victimization.
Ultimately, the circumstances under which Rev. Kusi-Kyere has been serving as a pastor at Abokobi, as well as his relationship with his congregation and the community, at large, may also have to be factored into the equation. In other words, while my lack of knowledge of the accused effectively precludes me from holding brief for the same, I am also not altogether ruling out the possibility of a conspiracy to destroying the accused, for whatever reasons may or may not obviously exist out there, as it were.
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*Kwame Okoampa-Ahoofe, Jr., Ph.D.
Department of English Nassau Community College of SUNY Garden City, New York May 18, 2013 E-mail: okoampaahoofe@optimum.net ###
