Martin Kpebu, a private legal practitioner and human rights activist, has called for psychological attention for Naa Okromo, the young lady at the centre of the 63-year-old Nungua Gbornu Wulomo’s controversial marriage.
The 12-year-old, now 16 years old, according to the traditional authorities, was ‘wedded’ to the Wulomo in a customary marriage on Friday, March 30.
The ceremony has since received widespread criticism from human rights activists and organisations, as the girl in question is below the marriageable age of eighteen (18).
The Ghana Police Service, in a statement on Facebook, confirmed that it has identified the girl and her mother and that both are under police protection.
The human rights lawyer Martin Kpebu, speaking on Ghana Tonight, on Tuesday, April 2, underscored the importance of giving the young lady all the psychological attention before any criminal proceedings against the Wulomo.
“It doesn’t give comfort, it doesn’t, but we should rather take solace in the fact that at least the police and the ministries, both the chieftaincy and then the gender, they’ve collaborated to take the young lady to a safe place with the mother.”
“So that is the key point because we need to attend to her interests, see that she’s well, get her the necessary, probably she is traumatised, we need the clinical psychologist, et cetera, to attend to her first. Then we can place emphasis on the criminal prosecution of the Wulomo or not,” he stated.
However, lawyer Kpebu maintained that the law protecting children, specifically Section 14 of the Children’s Act 1998, Act 560, is not clear on the age for consent for betrothal.
He therefore called for an urgent amendment of the Act to reflect the age for betrothal, just like in the case of marriage.
Gbornu Wulomo is betrothed to Naa Okromo
The GaDangme Council, in a statement dated Monday, April 1, clarified that the relationship between the 12-year-old girl and the Gborbu Wulomo of Nungua is a betrothal and not marriage.
Nuumo Borketey Laweh XXXIII, the 63-year-old Gborbu Wulomo of Nungua, faced backlash following a marriage ceremony with a 12-year-old girl, Naa Okromo.
“It is important to clarify that the traditional ruler has stated that the relationship with the underage girl is a betrothal and not a marriage. This distinction to us has altered the legal implications.”
“We are inclined to side with the Gborbu Wulomo since the original reportage made the point that there was another ceremony that awaited the girl to purify and prepare her for procreation,” portions of the statement read.
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