The Ghana Society of the Physically Disabled (GSPD) is displeased with musician Shatta Wale for “mocking” the disability of his colleague, Stonebwoy.
Shatta Wale last week, went after Stonebwoy for his absence at the highly anticipated Sallahfest event.
In his rant on stage, he used some ‘unprintable’ words against Stonebwoy including making fun of his limp, which many felt were needless even if he had beef with the ‘Nominate’ hitmaker.
In a press release, the GSPD condemned Shatta Wale's actions as irresponsible and potentially harmful to the mental health of the physically disabled community.
“The Ghana Society of the Physically Disabled (GSPD) has seen a video circulating on social media where Shatta Wale mocks Stonebouy with his disability. In the video, Shatta Wale said among other negative statements "You are a bad person that is why God made you a disabled person, you are a disabled person don't try and fight an able person".”
“By this statement, he is trying to say all persons with disabilities are bad that is why God has made us who we are. This primitive statement should not have come from a high-profile personality like Shata Wale,” the statement read.
The group insisted that being a person with a disability does not mean people are cursed, or God is punishing them.
The group called for Shatta Wale to apologise to the community and take measures to remove the offensive videos from social media platforms.
Citing the Disability Act 715, the GSPD reminded all that mocking or making derogatory comments about a person's disability is a punishable offence under the law.
“We want to remind Shatta Wale that a section of his own fans who are making him who he is, are persons with disabilities. Did he think how they will feel? or Shatta Wale thinks he has made it so he does not care?”
The group urged the public to embrace persons with disability and be empathetic towards them, saying "Disability indeed can be anyone's lot at any given time."
This comes after one musician Bosheba De Shyne expressed his disappointment in Shatta Wale after the comments he made on the Sallahfest stage.
The musician who has a disability said he did not find it in good taste that an artiste he looks up to had weaponised disability, using it to insult a fellow colleague.
Bosheba De Shyne in a video, shared with Joy FM’s Kwame Dadzie, said those words felt like it was directed at him and others with a disability.
He urged Shatta Wale to desist from such acts while calling on journalists to speak against the singer’s actions.
Read the full statement below:
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