The leadership of the House of Representatives is committed to ending all forms of violence against women and girls in Nigeria.
This was as the House held an historic match against gender based violence.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Tajudeen Abbas said that according to reports, a woman dies from violence every ten seconds.
” This year’s programme came at a time that all over the world, women are crying. Women are in anger. Women are in frustration. Because this the year the United Nations has issued a damn report that for every ten minutes, a woman is being killed across the world.
This is an unacceptable trend, this is an unforgivable trend. We in the parliament must have to unite more than ever before with relevant authorities, particularly, the law enforcement in ensuring that we curb this dangerous trend to the barest minimum. I want to say it categorically clear here that the National Assembly will do everything humanly possible to ensure that all forms of violence against women and girls are drastically reduced if not completely eliminated in the very near future,“Mr. Abbas said.
He promised that the National Assembly, particularly the House of Representatives would play an active role in the next National Action Plan Against Women violence that will be coming very soon.
“We will send our representatives, we will participate actively in ensuring that robost policies are enacted that will significantly reduce the incidents of violence of all kinds against women, against children, against girls,” he explained.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Kafilat Ogbara says one in three women globally are victims of gender based violence.
She called on security agencies to make efforts to ensure that victims of gender based violence get justice whenever they report their cases.
“We want to get justice. We want to get justice. We are saying no to lecturers violating students that they will fail them if they do not yielding in. We say no to bosses at work for violating their secretaries, their staff that if they do not yield in they are sacked. We say no all forms of violence against our children, our girls. Fathers raping daughters. Uncles raping children. Boys raping girls,” Mrs Ogbara said.
Mrs Ogbara led the match to the office of the Inspector General of Pollice where she presented a petition call for speedy administration of justice to victims of gender based violence.
“We are here this morning to present a petition for immediate intervention, investigation and prosecution on gender based violence to the Inspector General of Pollice. We are calling on you to call for urgent action on gender based violence during the 16 days of Activism Against Gender Based, “ she said.
The Inspector General of Pollice, Mr. Kayode Egbetokun, who personally received the petition, promised to study and implement the content of the petition.
“This occasion serves as a reminder that eradicating gender based violence across the globe is a collective effort. It is not only by law enforcement agents alone. It is not only by law enforcement actions alone that we can eradicate gender based violence. It is a collective obligation of everyone of us,”Mr. Egbetokun said.
He noted that gender based violence is a grim reality that has continued to devastate women and girls.
Also lending his voice to the call to end gender based violence, the Minister of Youth Development, Mr. Ayodele Olawande, said that the collaboration of ministries and agencies would see to the drastic reduction of Gender Based Violence in Nigeria.
‘Towards Beijing +30: UNiTE to End Violence Against Women and Girls’ is the theme for the 2024 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence.
Lateefah Ibrahim
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