Police Probe Marriage of 12-year-old to Sexagenarian
The Ghana Police Service has initiated an investigation into the marriage of a 12-year-old Ga girl to a 63-year-old fetish priest in Nungua in the Greater Accra Region.
The marriage ceremony took place on March 30, 2024, and has since sparked public outrage and backlash, bringing back conversations about the persistence of child marriage in Ghanaian society, with the public demanding the arrest of the man.
In a statement, the police said it had instigated an investigation into the allegation.
It said the girl and her mother had been subjected to the needed police protection with the necessary support being marshalled together with the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection and the Department of Social Welfare.
“The Ghana Police Service has identified and located the 12-year-old girl who is alleged to have been married to the 63-year-old Gborbu Wulomo in Nungua, Accra. The girl and her mother are currently under Police protection.”
“The Ghana Police Service is working with the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection and the Department of Social Welfare to provide her with the necessary support while the matter is being investigated.”
Nuumo Borketey Laweh Tsuru XXXIII, a fetish priest at the Gborbu Wulomo shrine in Nungua married the girl who according to the shrine, is ordained to serve one of the 99 deities of the Ga-Adangbe group.
Her critical role, the spokesperson of the shrine said, demands that she remains a virgin and thereby the marriage rites to ward off men.
Source: opemsuo.com /Hajara Fuseini
