After a Mu-Mu ticket comes LGBTQ Rights

Some members of the Civil Society Organizations of Nigeria have raised the alarm about an agreement supposedly proposed by the European Union to the African, Caribbean and Pacific countries about the LGBTQ agenda. The EU has held several meetings in the past with these countries to influence their stance on LGBTQ and get the relevant authorities to sign an agreement drafted by EU officials on the subject that, if signed, will supersede existing legislation in those countries on matters related to LGBTQ.

Speaking to Arise, TV correspondents and Chairman of the Human Rights Commission Sonnie Ekwowusi said they were alerted about the impending proposal two weeks ago. Still, they were unconcerned because the Same Sex Prohibition Act of 2024, signed into law by the Goodluck Jonathan administration, was still in force. This act directly contravenes any LGBTQ agreement and reflects the nation’s moral and judicial stance on the subject. He, however, stated that they got information alleging that the Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led Federal Government was planning to sign the agreement on November 15 2023. Mr Ekwowusi noted that this would have a significant and possibly negative impact on the country’s socio-political as well as cultural values of the people.

This is not the first time the EU has proposed such an agreement, and most probably would not be the last. Every successive government has been approached several times during their respective tenure, but to date, none previous presidents nor national assemblies have signed it.

This possibility of the Tinubu administration signing this agreement is very interesting against the backdrop of the Muslim-Muslim candidature of the President and Vice President, considering the very definite stance of Islam on the issue. The current administration campaigned on the premise of the Islamic Religion and relied heavily on Islamic scholars to influence their congregants, all of these against the secular state nature of the nation as well as the implied Principle of Federal Character in the Nigerian Constitution.

If the agreement goes through, the far-reaching implications may damage the already fragile psyche of the nation, and for a country that sometimes gets very volatile with violent religious clashes, there may be very much to worry about.

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Sholape Irepodun

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