When the happy ghast has no AI, it can't be controlled by the player — it stays frozen in place even when the player is riding it and trying to move. I believe this is not normal behavior, because horses don't have this issue — they remain frozen only when no player is riding them, and start moving when a player mounts them and provides input.
Tested with a NoAI Pig as well. The NoAI Pig was able to be controlled.