It is widely believed that lesbianism and homosexuality are foreign concepts and colonial imports to Sub-Saharan Africa. This popular view is not unconnected with the hegemonic heterosexual orientation of society.
The concept of homosexuality is regarded as a serious issue that poses great danger and distortion to the moral rectitude of the youth and individuals in Nigerian society.
It is considered neither natural nor genetic; homosexuality is also seen as encouraging infidelity in marriages. It is viewed as highly immoral and contrary to the basic culture of Africans.
It is perceived as a distortion of human sexuality and, in places such as Zanga Community, it fuels tension, as homosexual adherents are treated with disdain.
Homosexuality is generally viewed as unacceptable in Nigeria. The “Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Bill” prescribes lengthy prison sentences for those entering into same-sex marriages, those witnessing, aiding or abetting such unions, as well as for the operation and support of gay clubs, societies and organisations, and the public display of same-sex relationships.
Currently, in 34 states in Nigeria, homosexual acts among men are punishable by death, including caning or imprisonment for women.
Apart from the law enacted on January 7, 2014, Nigerians who belong to gay organisations, support same-sex marriages, or display same-sex affection in public are liable to prison sentences of up to 10 years.
This indicates that anyone who marries a member of the same sex in Nigeria risks a 14-year prison term upon conviction.
A 2015 report from PEN America and PEN Nigeria used potent and poignant individual testimonies by LGBTQ Nigerians to demonstrate how the 2014 Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act distorted Nigeria’s cultural landscape by silencing the country’s LGBTQ community through state-sanctioned intimidation and marginalisation.
Similarly, a 2017 report titled, “Not Dancing to Their Music: The Effects of Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia on the Lives of LGBTQ People in Nigeria,” focuses on the lives of LGBTQ persons in Nigeria after President Jonathan signed the SSMPA in 2014. The report documents the stigma, shame and sanctions faced by LGBT communities across the country and in the diaspora.
Despite this law and its grave punishment, many Nigerians still engage in same-sex activities. One case in point is that of one Stephen Amuse, who was reportedly caught in a same-sex act by his mother.
If anyone had told Stephen that his mother would one day disown him, he would have laughed it off as a dry joke. But reality dawned on him when she openly declared that she had no son after she found him naked and engaging in sexual activity with another boy in her sitting room. At the time, he was 15 and about to sit for the Senior Secondary School Certificate Examinations.
Stephen was supposed to be in church that Sunday morning, but he left much earlier to meet Cosmas, a neighbour’s son who was about his age, to play video games—an outing that resulted in an erotic encounter.
Stephen returned home to find his clothes dumped outside the house. It rained heavily that day, and his bag lay soaked in the mud as his mother shouted to neighbours that she had no son.
After what some people described as “compound torture,” Stephen was handed over to the police for prosecution. On the other hand, investigations revealed that Cosmas, who was caught with Stephen in the act, was sent abroad to stay with a relative so as not to constantly remind his family of the incident.
A source from Stephen’s neighbourhood, while speaking with our correspondent, said: “Not everyone would be like Cosmas. His parents could afford it; Stephen’s family couldn’t,” asserting a clear demarcation between the privileged and the poor.
Like Stephen, Osazee Kelvin Omoregie, a native of Upper Sokponba Community in Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area of Edo State, and born on March 5, 1995, in Benin City, narrowly escaped death when he was recently caught in a same-sex act.
Osazee Kelvin Omoregie was said to be a stand-up comedian and also a saxophonist working with a certain bar and event centre in Benin City. He was learnt to have been introduced into same-sex activity by a church member, identified as Edosa Godspower, on September 28, 2018, during one of their church programmes.
The culprit, now at large according to findings, was said to have been caught with his male partner, one Peter Nosa, while engaging in sexual activity on November 16, 2019. Peter Nosa, who it was gathered worked in the same place as Osazee as a waiter, was reportedly deeply engrossed in the act with him in Osazee’s room when Madam Osatohamwen Mudia, an elderly woman in the Sokponba community, sighted them through the window.
The bewildered woman, according to sources who spoke with our correspondent, drew the attention of the youths to the alleged abominable act considered sacrilegious by the people. Osazee and Peter were later apprehended by youths of the community and subsequently brought before the Council of Elders for traditional adjudication.
Before being taken to the elders of Upper Sokponba Community, Osazee and Peter were reportedly given severe beatings by the irate youths, according to sources. The elderly woman was said to have narrated how she caught the two men in the act, which the elders later described as amorous and sacrilegious in the community.
“Angered by the sacrilegious and abominable act, some of the community elders then recommended that the culprits should be killed instantly and their blood used to appease the gods and ancestors of the community.
“But one of the elders in the community, Pa Felix Ehigiator, prevailed against the death sentence on Osazee and Peter, saying they should not be killed yet because the Enojie (Duke) of the community was celebrating an ancestral festival (Ikpoleki) during that period.
“He suggested that the two partners should be handed over to the police for custody and that, after the festival, the elders could proceed with their earlier decision. All the elders later agreed to the suggestions and recommendations of Pa Ehigiator. They then invited the police to arrest the duo and take them to the station,” an eyewitness said.
However, there was a twist of events as one of the gay suspects, Osazee, who had been instructed by the elders of the community to wash his body at a tap behind the Elders’ Court, escaped from the crowd before the police could arrive at the scene.
Upon arriving at the scene, Peter Nosa was taken away by the police to the station, just as angry youths were said to have invaded the home of Osazee’s mother. The ageing woman was reportedly inflicted with injuries by the rampaging youths of the community.
“The elders of the community later placed a deadly curse on her that she will not be able to use her foot to walk again because they believe that she was aware of Osazee’s gay act and kept it secret. And since then, she has not been able to walk. She has been battling with illness from the curse of the elders,” a family source said.
According to a dependable source in the community, the families of the gay suspects have consequently been ordered by the Council of Elders to come forward within 14 days with the necessary items for cleansing the land, which they claimed had been desecrated.
“Failure to comply would attract very unpleasant consequences, which include placing a curse on the entire families, excommunication from the community, amongst others,” the source disclosed.
Contacted on phone, one of the members of the community council of elders, Pa Imade Edosa, while confirming the incident, said the elders have declared a manhunt for the fleeing Osazee.
He added that the police have been told to ensure that the fleeing Osazee is brought to book to serve as a deterrent to other young men who may want to indulge in the act considered strange and a threat to moral values among the people.
Imade lamented that the youths are fast embracing what he described as foreign culture and abandoning their own.
“Hence, what has happened is an eye-opener for the community leadership to further synergise with government to quickly curb one of the newest vices making inroads into our culture,” he added.
While confirming the report, the police in the state said that Peter Nosa has been arraigned in court for gay and other amorous offences, while efforts have been intensified to apprehend the fleeing Osazee Kelvin Omoregie.
The police appealed to members of the public who may have useful information that would lead to the arrest of Osazee to approach the nearest security formation in the country and report same, assuring that such information would be treated with strict confidentiality.
Unlike Osazee, who found love with another gay man, Tope is not so lucky.
“Finding love as a gay man is almost impossible. It is not as free and regular as straight people have it,” Tope told our Correspondent, who visited him recently at the Nigerian Correctional Service facility in Lagos State.
Tope is currently serving a 14-year jail term and, according to him, this does not end his problem, as his kinsmen are reportedly awaiting his release from prison custody before carrying out their tradition on him.
Tope’s father is an army officer, and he reportedly caught Tope one day watching gay porn on his phone. The man was said to have taken Tope outside the barracks, stripped him naked, and whipped him thoroughly with a horsewhip.
“He wanted to cut my manhood, but thanks to the intervention of a senior officer, he didn’t. He locked my mother out of the house and vowed to throw both of us out if she made any noise. That was the day I cried as I was tied to a pole behind the blocks undergoing renovation,” he said.
Tope took off his shirt to show our Correspondent the scars and wore it back immediately. His back was crusty and revealed marks from torture.
“That night, I was left there naked. At intervals, some junior officers poured some liquid on me. I felt like my body was on fire again. I saw a few children who glanced at me and muttered a few words as they walked back to their quarters.
“I was treated like an animal for being myself. I didn’t make myself gay,” his eyes probed into our Correspondent’s, seeking validation.
He added: “My father came before daylight the next day, took me in, and boiled some water to nurse my wounds together with my mum.
“They sobbed as they did, asking me why I chose to disgrace them and bring our family name to disrepute. Our existence (homosexuals) is a sin in Nigeria,” he added.
Tope further said that he left home to meet a lover after his mother’s death and after his father had retired and left the barracks in Lagos. That day, he said, he underwent terror.
He narrated: “We met on one of the gay dating sites. He didn’t know I was coming. I just told him I was around the area and he asked me to come over. We made love much later, and I slept, not knowing that would be the worst day of my life.
“I heard banging on the door, and some young men—up to seven of them—wearing masks walked in. I thought they were thieves. They told me not to shout, that if I did, they would kill me and dump my body in the river.
“They turned off the lights and called me a ‘bloody faggot,’ promising to teach me the lesson of my life. They had carnal knowledge of me one after the other, about seven of them. I was overpowered. They dispossessed me of my belongings and forced me to say, ‘I am a faggot, I am gay.’
“I cannot say why I always get into the wrong hands,” he said dejectedly, interjecting each word with a rasp.
“I went to see another person whom I had met before, and we had some dealings together. We met at a certain plaza. This guy led me to a group of men in the middle of nowhere, who threatened to kill me if I moved. But I managed to escape with only my shorts, and that was the worst mistake of my life.”
“They pursued after me and screamed “Homo! Homo! Kill him, like I was an insignificant being. Before I knew it, I was surrounded.
“They hit me with sticks and one even suggested I be burnt to death. The police later came and arrested me, arraigned me in court. This is how I found myself here (refering to the prison yard).
If life had permitted, Ester, who revealed she’s lesbian, would have taken her life after three attempts.
She told our Correspondent that she was filmed making out with a lover and was blackmailed into paying lots of money which she didn’t disclose the amount.
Esther said: “Despite paying the money, they sent the video to my contracts and my father saw it. Calls came in from everywhere that morning asking me how I got myself involved in a mess. I couldn’t take it, I mixed a few pills with kerosine and drank it but I didn’t die”.
She added that she hadn’t returned home since then as her mother told her not to step foot into her house after the scandal resulted in her father’s death.
For a married woman, Boma who has two boys, bisexuality is something she has embraced notwithstanding her marriage bond and ties with her children.
She said: “My mother found out because she saw me and my lover then on my phone in a compromised position. She threatened fire and brimstone. I was later banished by my family and people started discriminating against me”.
A transgender, Uche has gone into depression for some years after he told his mother, Mrs. Chinwe about his sexual orientation who dragged him to a spiritual home for deliverance. Uche stated that eman constantly, physically and sexually abused him on the premises that he was casting the devil out the demons that lured him into such act.
A 2017 report by Ige revealed that 91 percent of Nigerians do not believe that people are born homosexuals, indicating that there is little belief in scientific and genetic justification or explanations.
The survey also shows that nine in 10 adult Nigerians are in support of the 2014 Same-sex Marriage Prohibition Act. The survey includes a random nationwide sampling of 2000 interviewed respondents .
Everything in Nigeria, including sexuality, is linked to religion and tradition. It is obvious that Nigerian families are more religious than the actual people who brought the religion to them.
Also, the law against Same-sex Marriage/Relationship is now the ‘backbone’ upon which law enforcement agents are leveraging on to abuse offenders.
