Why is it so important for Nigeria, Uganda and now, Malawi to squander public resources in the repression of homosexual and lesbian citizens within these African nations? It is just astonishing that some African nations focus on the persecution of homosexuals, gays and lesbians, instead of the more important focus on continental development.
Why is it that political and religious leaders in these nations seem to see or interpret homosexual and lesbians sexual preferences and practices as if more of existential threats and or, inimical to the pursuits of health, wealth and happiness than say, malaria, AIDS, unemployment, unclean water, broken and decrepit public infrastructures?
I am a heterosexual male and I do not believe that my sexual preference makes me remarkable.
Besides, I also believe in the Human Rights of all persons regardless of such persons’ sexual preferences. I, We, Nigerians, Ugandans, South Africans, Malawians, Americans or anyone for that matter, do not have to have the same sexual interests or preferences as a basis or predicate for advocating the rights of others, others, who are unlike us.
I strongly believe that Nigerians, South Africans, Ugandans and Malawians and others, should be able to advocate the rights of homosexuals and lesbians citizens amongst us, even if we are decidedly heterosexuals. Just the same way in which we may be able to recognize the rights of others to practice their choice of preferred religion, even if we ourselves are of a different religious faith or are faithless, agnostic or atheists ourselves. We ought to be able to accept homosexuals, gays and lesbians without making value judgments or some sorts of dogmatic and judgmental moral condemnations of gays and lesbians, based upon or predicated on our moral certainty or religious “superiority”
I am quite at a loss when I listen the vehemence and stridency, with which some Nigerians, some South Africans, some Ugandans, some Malawians etc, talk, discuss, and in fact, attack gays and lesbians within our nations.
Why is it, that, in the midst of greater challenges, such as suffocating abject poverty, and pervasive-permeating wants in these nations, and yet, some of us, manage to squander our time and efforts, in addressing sexual choices made by grown men and women with mutuality of sexual interests and with affections, derived of knowing and informed consent, permission and mutual authorizations!
I am certainly at a total loss, as to why for instance, Uganda now notorious worldwide, for contemplating the death penalty or capital punishments for persons engaged in gay and lesbian sexual intercourse?
How about the death penalty for those public officials, who demonstrate gross incompetence and or unrivaled ineptitude?
Why would Uganda not start with prescribing the death penalty for corrupt public officials? How about it, if Uganda prescribes public execution for those public officials who mismanage the economies of these African nations? Why the unfounded fears for gays and lesbians?
Why would these African nations not focus punishing those who mismanage public resources? Why would those African nations, who hypocritically pretend to be so “morally” upright and concerned with what sorts and forms and styles of sex , and or sexual habits of the Africa citizens? The majority of the economies of the nations on the African continent are perilously close to implosion.
These African nations have no economic growth, they are in fact close to moribund, or nearly comatose and yet, these nations are wasting valuable time on debates about gays and lesbians? When in fact, there are many pressing and very desperate situations of hardships and sufferings on the African continent?
President Joseph Zuma of South Africa angled and schemed to be president and he became one, and now, his cavorting with some women and his peculiar treatments of some other women, is quite likely ending up as his signature issue and his legacy. Meanwhile, 20 years have passed since majority rule and the “death” of formal Apartheid minority rule in South Africa and the economic and social fortunes have not changed for the majority of South African citizens! Unfortunately, in the midst of all these abject poverty, continuing racial inequalities, and lopsidedness in the distribution of land and economic power and wealth in South Africa, President Zuma is mired in the matters of sexual lusts? President Zuma irresponsibly takes additional “wife” and a woman half Mr. Zuma’s age as the president of South Africa wishes to nullify the infamous rocking of the cradle by Tony Randall?
The majority of South Africans are wallowing in poverty and dire economic depression. The majority of South Africans are left to wonder what the dividends of democracy and post Apartheid South Africa is worth to them, and yet, all that they see, is the obscene and untamed sexual appetite of the septuagenarian Mr. Zuma lustily pursuing multiple skirts? After all the efforts made nationwide by the hitherto marginalized majority of Black South African, and the hard won victory which led to Black majority government in South Africa, why is it acceptable for Mr. Zuma to be squandering and missing opportunities to do right by the long suffering South African Black majority?
Why is President Jacob Zuma so content, satiated and constipated and seemingly unaware of the suffering and hardship which remain all to common in South Africa? Why is President Zuma able to allow himself distracted with lusts and the irrelevancies of sexual pleasures? Where is the fire in his belly and the desire to do good for the majority of South Africans? Why is Mr. Zuma’s emphasis not about common good and the public good of all South Africans? Why is President Zuma engaged in the worse than useless luxury and indulgence in sexual pleasures as if he were a teenager? Where are the fiery and fierce freedom fighters of South Africa who wanted to liberate South Africa? What a waste of opportunities? Why have power for power’s sake? Why has Mr. Zuma fought for so long to procure power and then, he has forgotten power’s real purpose beyond his personal perks and sexual pleasures?
Why is sexual pleasures suddenly so important in African politics anyway? Why is the debate and brouhaha about gays and lesbians beclouding the urgent, extremely urgent needful work of economic, social and political development in many African nations? Why is democracy, the rule of law, due process, constitutionalism and all elements of continental advancement relegated to the back burners? Why is the frivolities and sexual pleasures, heterosexual, homosexual or gay and lesbian sexual pleasures now front and center, and substitutes for political and economic reforms which are sorely lacking on the continent?
I have wondered for years, why was it so important for Mr. Nelson Mandela to divorce Winnie Mandela? And why Mr. Mandela could not overlook Winnie Mandela’s sins, whatever they were, just as he was uncommonly humane and magnanimously forgiving towards those who tormented him for 27 long tortuous years?
Why if Mr. Mandela had focused on land redistribution while he was president of South Africa? After all, 27 years of imprisonment in the hands of brutal minority and illegal regime of South Africa, made South Africa Mr. Mandela’s life work and Mrs. Winnie Mandela played pivotal and prominent roles in all of that. Mr. Mandela could have made further sacrifice and let Winnie be, whatever her matrimonial transgression during the incarceration of Mr. Mandela.
Why have Mr. Mandela, Mr. Thabo Mbeki and now Mr. Jacob Zuma neglected to focus on addressing and redressing the disparities and lopsidedness of political and economic power distribution in South Africa? Why has land redistribution in South Africa dealt with? Have Black political leaders in South African been afraid of being labeled and tarnished in the same ways as President Mugabe of Zimbabwe? President Mugabe obviously fell out of f
avor, after his partners to the pre-independence Lancaster House Agreement neglected to follow through with promises to fund and support land redistribution, and proceeded to castigate Mr. Mugabe, who for public purpose and his personal cover as well, belatedly, pursued land redistribution in Zimbabwe, where one percent of the white minority controlled ninety five percent of the entire land of Zimbabwe.
Why are too many political leaders of African nations engaged in the frivolities of sexual pleasures and amorous distractions and orgasmic plateaus, when the general state of affairs of human condition is abysmal dismal?
In the midst of metaphorical earthquake measuring 10.6 on Richter scale , earthquake of economic, political and social devastation in many African nations, why is so much time being wasted on bodily pleasures of heterosexual sex, gay and lesbian sex or any sexual pleasures at all? Africa, our house is on fire, and why is sexual pleasures of any type the centerpiece of continental Africa’s public debate?
What reasonable person focuses on sexual pleasures in the middle of an earthquake? What reasonable person focuses on sex in the middle of the economic, political and developmental devastation in Africa?
Why is it, that any sexual pleasures, and the morality and immorality about it, have now subsumed important public policy debates regarding sustainable economic and political development of the African continent? Why is the fixation on sexual pleasures in its varieties and the varieties and forms of it and sexual preferences become a fodder and cover, for ineptitude of public officials across the African continent?
Why this seeming clueless fixation on sexual pleasures whether heterosexual or homosexual?
Perhaps all political leaders in African nations should be required to forswear off sex and be celibate, but with the sex abuse epidemic in the Catholic Church in Ireland, Germany, Italy, and the United States etc, asking African leaders to forswear off sex and become celibate is portentous of the Catholic affliction?
But we must still, what have sexual pleasures, and sexual preferences got to do with the provision of clean water, full employment, steady electric power supply, electoral and constitutional reforms and provision of reliable public infrastructures across the nations of Africa? Our continent continue to suffer image devastation. Our continent continue to be left behind the rest of the world developmentally while too many of our leaders are focused on sexual pleasures!
Why have the focus on whether citizens of Africa plateau in heterosexual, gay and lesbian orgasms become substitute for proper focus on the priorities of economic and political development, progress and advancement of the continent of Africa?
What has orgasm got to do with the grinding poverty and the urgent answer to poverty, the urgent and needful development of Africa?
1 comment
This is the most insightful and intelligent article I have read about gays and lesbians in sub-Saharan Africa. It is based on reason and supporting evidence. It is not filled with lies, distortions, falsehoods, bigotry and homophobic hatred. I admire this author greatly.