My Dear Ambassador of the United States, Madam Virginia Palmer, we have not met face to face, but the only time I saw you in person was at the 26th GJA Awards Night. I was seated at the table immediately behind yours and I loved how you freely interacted with the others dignitaries seated at your table.
And when you got up to speak, I admired your deep knowledge of media in Ghana and you offered some solutions to some of the problems facing the media in this country.
A few days ago, you flashed in social media and what was attributed to you was about LGBT. You were quoted in an interview you granted on JoyNews’ Foreign Affairs programme that was aired on Friday, December 10, 2022.
You were said to have made these statements. “We want your gay children to be safe;” “I also want to be really clear that we are not trying to be promoting homosexuality or anything like that” and “We don’t want your straight children to be gay, we want your gay children to be safe and I think it is very important that any sort of threat on one group demonstrates that rights of other people can be encroached upon and discrimination of any kind frankly, is bad.”
In summary, she stated that the US was not interested in having straight children change their orientation but rather that the government of Ghana protects Ghanaians who identify as Lesbians, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer, LGBTQ.
Madam Ambassador, are you really saying that the rights of a minority must be protected, by fire by force? Do not get me wrong, I am not in anyway saying that the minority in this country are to be treated like trash. You see, that proverbial African hospitality which is in our genes will not permit that.
That value we place on all humans who we consider as children of God as we are, will not allow that.Significantly, in the Black African, a total stranger should be well taken care off, for he or she could be an angel from God.
Madam Ambassador, the USA is proclaimed to be the most democratic nation on earth, where majority decisions count. But what is happening, in your country?
Of the over 335 million US citizens, 7.1% profess LGBTQ and you know as well as I do that the majority who are not, can get punished by the law if they discriminate against LGBTQs. A pastor said he would not marry gay couples and he was jailed. The faith and belief of this pastor was not taken into consideration.
And Jack Phillips,a baker in Colorado was fined for refusing to bake a cake for a transgender. So now in America, one’s belief can be curtailed to make sure that the other person’s belief is respected. Is that the case?
Are you confirming that in America, the rights of about 24 million people now overrides the rights of over 312 million others.
Madam Ambassador, in the USA, the Blacks make up 13.6% or about 46 million. Yet, their rights are curtailed.
Pets are treated much better than the average Black. It is an open secret that Blacks are targeted for extermination, because before George Floyd, there were many others who were unnecessarily killed. Some were shot while just jogging, others were shot in their homes while they were dancing and celebrating.
A kid was shot dead while playing in front of his house. The list is so long, like from Earth to the Moon. So, Madam Ambassador, are you saying that the rights of people who accept they are queer should override the rights of people of another race?
Madam Ambassador, I think you must accept that if the rights of Blacks in America are not protected, the US has no moral rights to fight for rights of others in any other country.
America will always come out strong against nations which have human rights abuses issues and go ahead and place sanctions on them. Yet, in your country, Blacks live on edge, because anytime, they could be killed like pests and the same law will defend their killers.
Madam Ambassador, rights must be absolute and not selective.
You said you want our gay children to be safe. But who said they are not safe? In fact, so long as they do not abuse our God-given decent tradition of remaining in the culture of male and female and marriage being about a male husband and a female wife, there will be no problem. And since you will agree that anyone who violates any law must be punished, the LGBTQ+ here will have to be corrected.
Madam Ambassador, if you say you are not here to promote LGBTQ then why even comment on this issue with such words? Why not offer solutions that will halt our straight children from going queer?
And here, the USA can help us to halt LGBTQ in Ghana. So, are you truly sincere in what you said? I hear President Joe Biden issued a time table for his envoys abroad to make sure their host countries start considering LGBTQ. Can you please confirm this?
Madam Ambassador, did you actually say that “… it is very important that any sort of threat on one group demonstrates that rights of other people can be encroached upon and discrimination of any kind frankly, is bad?” I have Blacks in the US in mind, I have George Floyd in mind.
Madam Ambassador, have you considered the financial implication of a poor economy like ours if Ghana embraces LGBTQ+? You are very much aware of cost of maintaining these queer people, but if you have forgotten, then let me remind you.
Assuming Ghana embraces LGBTQ+ and like the USA, 7.1% of our population are LGBTQ+. That will mean, over 2 million out of the 33 million Ghanaians will profess this odd behaviour. Now in the US today, 1.6% of adults are transgender and if Ghana also has 1.6% made up of transgenders, we are talking about 528,000 people.
Madam Ambassador, you are also aware that the average cost of surgery which will completely change a man to woman and woman to man is $100,000.00.Can you comprehend what pressure this will place on our economy? Madam, we are talking here of $52.8 billion. Can you just stop to think of what even half of that will do to us in Ghana?
Madam Ambassador, today we only need at most $5 billion to strategize our economy, and you are here suggesting we look for ten times that amount to just change the sexes of 528,000 adults? What about developmental projects like improvement of our health facilities, education, agriculture, industries, transportation, accommodation facilities and utilities among many others?
Madam Ambassador, you are also aware that we in this country cannot in any way afford the maintenance of the LGBTQ+, their health care and psychotherapy treatments being mandatory. Some health disparities among LGBTQ+ include Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), violence, substance abuse, mental health conditions, obesity and eating disorders, breast and cervical cancers, anal cancers and heart diseases.
Madam Ambassador, even though Ghana came out among top nations in the management of Covid-19, we cannot say we are among the best in the world when it comes to provision of proper health delivery. So, we cannot afford being saddled with diseases that could be prevented, by saying “No” to LGBTQ+.
Madam Ambassador, you must be aware that LGBTQ+ practices are not human. The European Court has made a statement that marriage is solely between man and woman. And that is exactly what God our Creator has ordered it to be. Is it not wonderful that every culture, every tradition, every religion does not approve of homosexuality?
This is a natural law and this law has been imprinted into the hearts, minds and souls of all humans and going against it, will hit us hard. Remember that whenever we go against God’s plans we get punished severely. Look at global warming, which is the result of our wrecked approach to the environment and the ecosystem.
Madam Ambassador, there are occasions when some vehicle manufacturers would note some defects in cars they had produced and sold. They will quickly withdraw these cars and repair the defects or possibly refund the cost to the buyers.
Now, if the vehicle manufacturer sighted something wrong with what he produced and withdraws them to correct the defects, why do people like you, not come out with cure for LGBTQ+ since they have some challenges which do not conform with humanity and nature?
Why do you withdraw cars with defects and correct these, but you rather promote defects in humans?
Thanks for your attention.
Hon Daniel Dugan
