By Mary Bassey, House of Assembly Correspondent
The Speaker of the Cross River State House Of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Elvert Ayambem has warned that gay activities are outlawed in Cross River State.
This is coming after a suspected gay party was organized on the 30th of June 2023, at a hotel in Ekorinim in Calabar Municipality.
He alleged that the party had underage teenagers in attendance.
The Speaker issued the caution in a press release signed by his Press Secretary, Mr. Matthew Okache. It reads:
Hon. Speaker is already reaching out to security agencies in the State and relevant government MDAs to ensure that organizers of that obscenity and their collaborators are brought to the book as a deterrence.
Speaker Ayambem further wants to seize this occasion to warn anyone or any organization in connection with such unlawful activities to desist from such acts or risk prosecution by the authorities.
It will be recalled that His Excellency, former President Goodluck Jonathan, on the 7th of January 2014, signed the “Same-Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Bill” into law. The law imposes a 14-year prison sentence on anyone who “(enters) into a same-sex marriage contract or civil union,” and a 10-year sentence on individuals or groups, including religious leaders, who “witness, abet, and aid the solemnization of a same-sex marriage or union.”
It also imposes a 10-year prison sentence on those who “directly or indirectly make public
show of same-sex amorous relationships and anyone who registers, operates, or participates in gay clubs, societies, and organizations, including supporters of those groups.
In addition, Speaker Ayambem reminded hospitality operators in the State that, no hotel or club should entertain anyone under 18 years of age at any time unless he/she is accompanied by their parents/and or guardians.
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