Nuumo Borketey Laweh XXXIII’s marriage to 12-year-old Naa Okromo, according to private legal practitioner, Francis-Xavier Sosu, is “illegal, null and void”.
According to the human rights lawyer, “the conduct of the Wulomo constitute a breach of both local and international laws on Child care and protection and the said conduct is criminal.”
This is contained in a petition to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service to effect the arrest, investigation and prosecution of the Wulomo for breaching the rights of the young girl.
The Saturday March 30, 2024 event at Nungua which has since gone viral on social media has sparked public uproar regarding the position of the law and tradition.
Citing portions of Article 16(2) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Mr. Sosu noted that “Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.”
He also added portions of the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), citing various portions of Ghana’s Constitution and the Children’s Act necessitating his call for the priest’s arrest, investigation and prosecution.
Read his full petition to the CID here.
