Nigeria’s former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bolaji Akinyemi, has said that the British and United States governments lobbied him to facilitate the adoption of same-sex marriage in Nigeria.
Mr Akinyemi stated this during an interview with Arise TV on Wednesday.
The former minister said he was lobbied by officials of the two countries to prevail on Nigerian authorities to reverse the policy while the legislation was being initiated at the National Assembly.
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Speaking on the recent overturning of abortion rights by the US Supreme Court, Akinyemi said;
“I am not in favour of man and man marriage or woman and woman marriage,”
“Part of why I feel strongly about this man and man marriage or woman and woman marriage is the fact that the Americans even try to force down our throats in Nigeria.
“I know how I was lobbied by the US and Britain when (former President Goodluck) Jonathan was in power.
“The Secretary-General of the Commonwealth came visiting when we had that legislation before the National Assembly.
“And he also consulted me about how he should handle the situation in his meeting with President Jonathan and I advised him that that was a ‘no-go area’ for us.
“(This is because) we don’t like being told the definition of marriage in Nigeria. I also told him that it (adopting gay marriage) will simply heat up the system.”
Recall that Nigeria, in 2014, passed a law which outlawed same-sex marriage or sexual relationships, with offenders likely to face 14 years jail term on conviction.
The same-sex marriage prohibition act was passed by the senate in 2011, while the house of representative approved it in July 2013, the bill was signed into law on January 7, 2014.
Nigeria, like many other African countries, is opposed to same-sex marriage and has laws criminalising it.
Same-sex marriage has, however, been accepted in many Western countries.
In Africa, South-Africa is the only country that has legalised same-sex marriage across the continent.
As of 2022, marriage between same-sex couples is legally conducted and recognised in 33 countries including Mexico which recently adopted the law.
