Bauchi is a deeply conservative Muslim-dominated state with strong support for Islamic law. Situated in the North-East geopolitical zone, it was one of the states that re-introduced the Sharia as part of its legal system in Northern Nigeria. The state forbids homosexuality, known in Hausa language as Luwadi. Gays and lesbians can be legally stoned to death If found guilty. But despite its strict laws and hostility towards same-gender sex, there exists an underground community where lesbians, gays, and bisexuals live, David Adenuga reports.

Fatima, a 23-year-old resident of Bauchi, discovered her sexual orientation while in Secondary school. She was barely 15 at the time.

The Indigene of Gombe State was introduced to lesbianism by her classmates in secondary school, although she could not put a name to what she was doing then because she was naïve.

“I remember we were playing hide and seek and we happened to hide in the same place. Things got weird and she kissed me and touched my breast.

“The following day, we were alone at home, so we started it again. I must say the experience is still fresh in my head,” she said.

Over time, Fatimah became more and more attracted to her fellow girls, and when she gained admission Into a tertiary institution in Bauchi, she continued to explore her weird sexuality.

She said: “I met my new girlfriend in the polytechnic. I was attracted to her shape. I like tall girls and she dresses in a sexy manner. I was the man in the relationship and she was my baby.

“I met her at a local pub in Gwallameji and she was just unusually staring at me. I would later approach her after and since then our chemistry has been amazing.”

Khadijah, Fatimah’s lover in Bauchi, told the reporter that her journey into lesbianism began at the age of 16 when she had her first same-gender sex.

She said she was lured by a friend after she got tipsy at a house party she was invited to. She would later regret her actions but still find it difficult to stop getting attracted to her fellow girls.

It was only a matter of time before she started experimenting with other girls.

After gaining admission into a tertiary institution, she met Fatimah, who opened her eyes more to her sexuality.

“My girlfriend used to give me multiple orgasms. It was then that I started to accept my sexuality as a lesbian,” she said.

Speaking on her relationship with Fatimah, she said she would continue to remain loyal to her even though other girls do ask her out.

“I don’t want to cheat on her. I am attracted to my girlfriend because she is my spec and I like dark-skinned girls. She is very neat and she shaves regularly,” Khadijah said.

Bisexuals

Favour, a resident of Gwallameji in the Bauchi metropolis, had known that she was bisexual since she was young, but she never accepted her sexuality because of societal values and her family.

As a result, she did not have the boldness to explore her sexuality even when she hardly enjoyed fun with men. She would later start a couple of flings here and there with girls who wanted to experiment, but she did not date any one of them because she loved her boyfriend.

She said: “I love my boyfriend but I used to ask myself if he is a real man. Since I have known him, he has never made me to reach the climax.

“My female friend once invited me for a girls’ hang out and it was all fun. We were all high and from there, one thing led to another.

“We made out in a hotel. We all had a nice time because girls know the right way to touch each other.

“Because I enjoyed it as I reached a climax, I had to invite about three of them to my place and we all had more fun. I was crying and squirting.

“After everything, I had to give them some money to thank them.

Favour, however, said her boyfriend started getting suspicious about her romance with other girls.

She said: “The suspicion grew to the extent that he confronted me and started accusing me of being a lesbian. He said a lot of hurtful things to me.

“He was really upset. He said he doesn’t do the gay stuff and he doesn’t know what to think of me anymore.

“I felt sad after we parted ways and I don’t know if any man can accept me the way I am.”

Similarly, Faith, who is also bisexual, told the reporter that keeping a boyfriend was the only way to hide her sexuality towards the same gender because she was more into girls than the opposite sex.

Faith, who hails from Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area in Bauchi State, told this reporter that she became aware of her sexual orientation at the age of 14.

Although she stopped having the nasty sexual fantasies after she sought counseling, the strong feelings came back and her flesh was too weak to resist it.

She said:

“The fantasies came back, and this time around, I accepted this shameful part of me and gave in to it after much struggle. I started dating a girl and I enjoyed sex more with her than my boyfriend to the point that I stopped caring about my relationship with him.”

“I’m 24 now and I don’t even enjoy sex with men. My girlfriend would make me squirt because we use sex toys.

“Aside from that, I only reach orgasm when I masturbate after watching lesbian porn. So now I think I’m attracted to girls.

“I still can’t wrap my head around it because men don’t satisfy me. I love sex but I think I can only enjoy it with a girl.”

Our challenges – Hisbah corps

The HIsbah Corps, a religious security outfit in Bauchi, says it has arrested more than 100 homosexuals in the state in recebt times only for highly placed people to secure their release.

Giving instances in an interview, the Hisbah State Commander, Ibrahim Musa Yisin, said: “Yes, we have made mass and Individual arrests. Normally, we get reports or when they are apprehended by the community, they bring them to us and we do charge them to court.

“The first arrest was in 2010 at a local pub in Bauchi. They invited their colleagues from different states of Katsina, Sokoto, Gombe, and Borno. They came for same-sex marriage. We saw evidence of blood in the toilet where they allegedly had sex. About 23 of them were arrested that year.

“Similarly, In 2013 they converged in the name of celebration again at the Federal Secretariat Bauchi. And when we got wind of their queer activity, we raided there and apprehended about 46 of them.

“Based on our investigations, we found that six of them were the organisers.

“We took the 40 of them to the station and the organisers were put in the custody of the Civil Defence.

“But to our surprise, the 40 people were all released on bail due to the intervention of highly placed people who used their connections to secure their release. Hence, we were not able to prosecute any of them because the case died there at the police station.

“But the other six that were with the Civil Defence were later prosecuted and made to serve jail terms.

“Also In 2019, during the first term of the current administration, we raided a place called Mike House near Zaranda Hotel.

“They invited their colleagues from Plateau and Kano states again, and we went there and were able to arrest more than 40.

“We took them to the station. Some of them were taken to court and some were released on bail.

“The problem we used to have is that these gay suspects are either released before prosecution or in the process of prosecution.

“Before you know it, you begin to see intervention from big men sympathizing with them.

“We have also realised that some of these LGBTs are being protected by NGOs in the name of interventions for the ones who have been infected with HIV.

“Homosexuality is against our culture and religion, but these are the forces encouraging these abnormal acts, sponsoring and providing them support in the name of donors.”

Musa went on to explain that although the court passes judgment in the Sharia court, the execution lies with the government and not Sharia Court or law.

“This is constitutional because there is no death judgment that will be passed in a state and will be executed without the knowledge of the governor.”

Consequences

The Nigerian law and those of most African countries prohibit same-sex unions, relationships, and/or representations while defaulters can be jailed for 14 years.

In 2014, former President Goodluck Jonathan signed the Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act into law. The bill tightens the noose against homosexuals, bans same-sex marriages, gay groups, and public shows of same-sex affection. The legislation applies across Nigeria, affecting all citizens.

Twelve states in northern Nigeria subscribe to the Islamic legal system in a country that has its population equally split between Islamic and Christian faiths. Most states in the predominantly Muslim north of Nigeria adopted the Islamic law known as the Sharia since the end of military rule in 1999.

Headquarters of Ningi Local Government Area, Bauchi State, sentenced three suspected gays to death by stoning. The trio, Abdullahi Abubakar Beti, 30, Kamilu Ya’u, 20, and Mal Haruna, 70, were arrested for allegedly committing homosexuality at Gwada village, an offence punishable by death under the provision of Section 134 of the Bauchi State penal law of 2001.

But despite the strict laws, LGTBs appear to have continued to engage in their queer lifestyles, though hidden from the law. This reporter observed that they now create groups on social media platforms where they link up with each other to avoid the prying eyes of the public.

Hajara, who hails from Toro Local Government Area in Bauchi Stare, was almost lured into lesbianism through WhatsApp, a messaging app on smartphones, by a friend. The so-called friend added her to a group where she was introduced to other girls.

In her conversation with this reporter, Hajara said she joined the group because she happens to be a make-up artiste and intended to promote her business in the group. But in no time, girls started sending lewd pictures of themselves to the group.

As if that was not enough, a pretty lady privately chatted with her, and before she realised what was going on, the girl started sharing nude videos with her after asking them to be friends.

“I was shocked. The lady kept on inviting me to visit her in Wunti Dada here in Bauchi because that is where she stays. But I declined her invitation. I had to block her number when the pressure was getting to me.”

Explaining how the Sharia law works, Barrister Maimuna Ibrahim Yusuf, a lawyer with the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), Bauchi chapter, told the reporter that the law is appropriate as punishment for homosexuality because Islamic law is bound by the teachings of the Quran and Hadith.

According to her, homosexuals can’t claim their fundamental human rights under Sharia law except if he or she is not a Muslim.

”Homosexuals are being misled by the issues of fundamental rights. They never knew that in this issue of fundamental rights, your right stops when someone else’s right starts.

“Just because you have a right to live your life does not mean you should practice some things that will destroy other people’s rights. There are exceptions to the rights that we have.”

But a US-based Nigerian gay rights activist, Edafe Okporo, in an email sent to our reporter, faulted the Sharia law, saying that people should not be punished for being who they are.

“People should not be punished for being who they are. It’s a misunderstanding of who we are that leads to fear.

“I do not understand you, so you don’t deserve to live? That’s not the right way to make a law.

“But Sharia law is a religious belief system. Many people who practice the religion do not have a choice; they have to respect or disrespect their God.

“It is difficult to cast away someone’s belief system.”

Concerns over high prevalence of HIV among gays

HIV prevalence among nen who have sex with men (MSM) in Nigeria is on an alarming progression with a relative increase of 10% per year over seven years.

The report stated that the HIV epidemic among MSM in Nigeria is severe and is one of the defining challenges ahead, and maybe the most critical gap in the national HIV prevention programme to control the epidemic in Nigeria.

It said further that MSM In Nigeria are conservatively estimated to be less

Than 1% of the Nigerian population yet nationally account for about 20% of new HIV infections.

“MSM is criminalised and stigmatised and this has further worsened in recent years with the passing of the SameSex Marriage Prohibition law of 2014.

“The new law included clauses that prohibited organisations from providing services to MSM and facilitation of meetings that support gay people, thus further criminalising same-sex activities.”

“Studies have shown that these restrictive policies further limit the poor coverage of HIV prevention, treatment, and care programmes among MSM. Very few MSM-targeted HIV prevention, treatment and care services exist in a limited number of states in Nigeria.

“This is chiefly because of limited data on the size estimate of MSM across states as well as limited funding for key population dedicated programmes,” BMC stated in its research article.

Similarly, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS, UNAIDS in its 2021 report estimates that between 40 per cent and 50 per cent of all new HIV infections may occur among individuals in key populations. Key populations are people who inject drugs, men who have sex with men, transgender persons, sex workers, and prisoners.

The UN Agency noted that around the world, key populations face much higher rates of HIV and AIDS than the general population and are most at risk for contracting HIV around the world.

It, however, attributed underreporting of such HIV cases as common within key populations, due to fears of stigma, backlash, and discrimination by the victims.

Data by the UN Agency also revealed that in Nigeria, sex workers, men who have sex with men, and people who inject drugs, make up only 3.4 per cent of the population, yet they account for about 32 percent of new infections.

Moreover, a document of the Bauchi State Government on Sustainability Road Map for HIV Response (2016 – 2018) as seen by this reporter showed that a key population survey has not been conducted in the state, hence data to support drivers of the HIV epidemic is not available.

Experts attribute rise in homosexuality to poverty, pornography, others

Experts have attributed access to pornographic contents, child sexual abuse, peer group, poverty, rituals and other factors to be the likely cause of homosexuality in society, particularly in the northern part of Nigeria.

Chioma Adelaja, a clinical psychologist and counsellor, described homosexuality as both a menace and a relative abnormality in the society.

She said though Western cultures permit homosexuality and don’t see it as an offence, most African countries like Nigeria and Uganda signed one of the world’s toughest anti-LGBTQ laws.

“We live in a country with high moral values and expectations since abnormality can be defined in layman’s language as” *out of the normal*.

“In other words, a behaviour is considered abnormal when it contradicts the expected normal behavio ur of a habitat.”

“You can see that homosexuality is taboo here and it’s against our culture and religion. So relatively homosexuality is both a menace and a relative abnormality in our society.”

Dr. Mahmood Danasabe, the Head of the Department of Psychology at the Federal University Gashua, in an interview with our correspondent, explained that no single factor can be responsible for homosexuality, adding that other likely factors are biological, genetic, psychological and cultural.

In his words: “When we are saying the actual causes, academically we can say it is hypothetical. That is because it’s still under investigation. It’s multi-dimensional or multifactorial.”

Speaking on pornographic content, he said children can easily be controlled by what they watch, especially when a child is below seven years old, adding that they start to get sexual arousal after puberty stage.

On childhood sexual abuse, he said once a child has this kind of problem, psychologically, he or she will develop gender identity confusion and gender preference to escape the pain and trauma.

“At that stage, if it’s a male or female that is abusing them, they tend to carry out this hatred against the person that’s abusing them, hence it may affect their sexual orientation.

“Childhood sexual abuse may affect the propensity of such a child when growing up into an adult. Such a child can even turn into a transgender.”

Lamenting the high rate of poverty in the northern part of the country, he identified it as another cause of homosexuality.

He said: “Psychologically, when people are poor, there is nothing they cannot do. In this part of the country, the poverty rate is high to the extent that people can submit themselves to any form of sexual activity.

“Early marriage too is another factor; when someone marries early and there is an early divorce.

“Imagine a 60-year-old man marrying an 18-year-old girl. Physiologically it will affect the girl and she won’t be the same again after separation from the marriage.”

On cultism, Danasabe said: “During my research, I discovered homosexuality is also practised by people for spiritual powers and wealth, especially the highly placed people. This is very common in developing countries like Nigeria.”

On biological factors, he said, “To start with the biological aspect or we can say predisposing factors to homosexuality, there is what we call the Brain Mirror Anatomy; that is the structure of the brain. Some people are born with what we call congenital abnormalities of the brain. The brain is there but It’s congenital.

“It can be abnormal due to some reasons, either X-ray or due to taking drugs by the mother when the child was in the womb. So we can even talk of diseases like infections, complications like meningitis or chronic brain injury or cancer of the brain. All these are likely to lead to homosexuality.

“When we say biological, we are talking of deviation from normal. That is the inability of an individual to lose contact with reality.”

He continued: “Still under biological factors, we have genetics. We are talking of inborn. Also, there are what we call hormonal activities in the body.

“When we talk of hormones, we are taking off some chemical substances in the body that speed up the reaction.

“We have sexual hormones in males and females. We have testosterone in males and progesterone in females. These are hormones that are specifically meant for the regulation of sexual activities in the body.

“In a situation whereby a woman or a lady has substantially very high production of testosterone hormones, then she is bound to have that zeal to have sexual intercourse with her gender while a substantial decrease in these testosterone hormones in a man predisposes this homosexuality.”

On psychological factors, he said: “When we say psychological, we are talking of individual behaviors toward homosexuality. There is what we call the issue of peer group pressure.

“People want to be identified with the group they are in. If you are not lucky and your peer group happens to be in this situation, there is always pressure to want to belong.

“There is even a study that showed that 58.3% of most homosexuality, either male or female, are more or less influenced by their peers.

“Also, imagine when a male child has a peer group of females and this boy grew up among females. So in this case, there is an inclination that he will start to behave like a female.” (The Nation)

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