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<\/div>\nThe priest married the girl in a huge ceremony on Saturday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
A 63-year-old priest in Ghana, who is facing backlash<\/a> for marrying a 12-year-old girl, has insisted that the marriage was not about sexual relationship. A spokesperson of the priest said the girl is expected to help the priest with his “spiritual duties”. Nuumo Borketey Laweh Tsuru XXXIII, a spiritual leader in the Nungua area of the capital, Accra, wed the unidentified child in a huge ceremony on Saturday. Mr Tsuru, known as a “Gborbu Wulomo,” or traditional high priest, wields significant spiritual authority in the Nungua indigenous community.<\/p>\n After the widespread controversy, the girl and her mother were placed under police protection and Ghana’s attorney general opened an investigation, as per a report in South China Morning Post (SCMP)<\/em>.<\/p>\n “The allegations, if proven, constitute a criminal offence for which all persons involved must face prosecution,” the outlet quoted the attorney general’s office as saying in a statement.<\/p>\n Under Ghanaian law, the legal minimum age for marriage is 18.<\/p>\n But the priest’s spokesperson defended his action, saying the girl is not expected to fulfil marital duties until she reaches the legal age of consent, which is 16 in Ghana.<\/p>\n “It’s not a marriage ceremony. There is nothing sexual attached to it. The priest has three customary wives already. It’s a customary role to help the priest with his spiritual duties,” spokesperson Mankralo Shwonotalor said, as per the SCMP<\/em> report<\/a>.<\/p>\n Images of the wedding ceremony<\/a> were widely circulated on social media. It showed dozens of community members attended the event. As per the BBC<\/em><\/a>, women who attended the ceremony were heard telling the girl to be prepared for wifely duties and to use perfumes to boost hear appeal to her husband.<\/p>\n The women also advised her to dress teasingly for her husband, according to the outlet.<\/p>\n The photos triggered a public outcry by many Ghanaians who pointed out that the practice was illegal. Critics have also called for the authorities to dissolve the marriage and investigate the priest.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n