Very Rotten Apples And Bananas!

“It will not be under the Presidency of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo that same-sex marriage will be legalised in Ghana. It will never happen in my time as President.” – President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at Asante Mampong on Saturday, February 27, 2021, at the installation of the 2nd Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Ghana.

Gays and lesbians palaver is one issue that has dominated the country’s airwaves this past week. It is indeed the most trending issue in the country right now. Gays, lesbians and people of their kind are now referred to as LGBTQI+, but I prefer calling them rotten apples and bananas because that is exactly what they are – rotten.

I am not perfect and do not pretend to be. Neither do I claim to have angelic characteristics. I’m human and bound to do wrong. But I do not advertise my frailties and try to compel others to acknowledge that wrongdoing as my human rights.

Yes, that is the beginning of the problem some of us have with rotten apples and bananas. Much as we abhor mating between same-sex folks, we have no problem if they keep the abominable act secret. We only become worried and agitated when they advertise the despicable act and try to compel us to accept it. The resultant effect of that action is that the few rotten apples and bananas may infect the fresh ones in the basket.

I’m sure ‘one bad apple spoils the bunch’ is a saying you’ve heard time without number. The saying is true both literally and metaphorically.

The literal way this happens is simply through an apple infested with some fungi or critters that reproduce and spread throughout all the apples in a box, ruining them as they go. A hydrocarbon chemical called ethylene, a fruit-ripening hormone, acts as a catalyst, ripens and spoils the rest of the apples. Ripening and spoilage can, therefore, be slowed down by separating the spoilt ones from the fresh ones, thereby reducing the amount of ethylene the fruits make.

Metaphorically, we cannot sit aloof and allow the few rotten apples and bananas to induce our young ones with their abominable acts. We need to act quickly and separate the rotten ones from the fresh ones in order to save the community from degenerating.

Indeed, a chunk of the country’s population is very religious as Christians and Muslims make up more than 90%. Both religions frown on the activities of rotten apples and bananas.

Unfortunately, we’ve not been proactive at all. We all go to sleep only to wake up and make little noise when there is an issue; and then go back to sleep. In the meantime, the problem festers and more fresh apples and bananas get contaminated by the few rotten ones.

The matter becomes worrying when one reads the literature on rotten apples and bananas. The health implications of their practice make me wonder why the West continues to promote the detestable act.

According to the Dane County Youth Assessment Surveys (2008-2009), rotten apples and bananas are more likely to engage in high-risk sexual behaviours leading to an increased incidence of STDs. The rates of gonorrhea, chlamydia and HIV are twice as higher amongst rotten bananas, as amongst fresh bananas.

A recent article in the American Journal of Public Health surveyed 13,174 individuals between 2019 and 2020. It reported similar concerning trends among rotten apples and bananas in terms of sexually provocative behaviours. The rotten bunch is at an increased risk for recreational substance abuse, obesity, and multiple cancer-related risk factors.

Down here in Asomdwekrom and other Abibiman nations, the situation could even be worse as many of the rotten apples and bananas are afraid or feel shy to seek medical help. Is it, therefore, not worrying that it is such health-threatening practices that the West wants to promote in these parts of the world.

Frankly, I’m sometimes appalled at the hypocrisy of the so-called advocates and protectors of human rights. How can they support and promote same-sex relationship, but vehemently oppose polygamy? Is it the case that rotten apples and bananas are more human than those of us who believe in polygamy?

The West may be more advanced than we are. But one thing they are envious of is the fact that Abibiman has a better family values system. And the greatest threat to this social support system is the moral decadence on display in the name of human rights. The earlier we wake up from our slumber, the better for us!

See you next week for another interesting konkonsa, Deo volente!