News

Opinion: Protecting our girls against sexual violence- By Elisha Attai

Published

5 years ago

July 6, 2019

Editor

By Elisha Attai

Across the world, girls face adversities and abuses that affect their self-esteem, education, training, and entry into the workforce. Abuse in all its forms is a daily reality for many Nigerian children and only a fraction ever receive help.

According to UNICEF, 6 out of every 10 children experience some form of violence – one in four girls have been victims of sexual violence. Of the children who reported violence, fewer than five out of 100 received any form of support.

It is important to understand the ramifications of sexual assault, not only as a physical act but also could be verbal or visual sexual abuse or any act that forces a person to join in unwanted sexual contact or attention. It encompasses a range of acts, including coerced sex in marriage and dating relationships, rape by strangers, sexual harassment (including demands of sex for jobs or school grades), and rape of children, trafficking of women and girls, female genital mutilation, and forced exposure to pornography.

Sexual assault is also not discriminatory to gender; both males and females are affected but studies have shown that the number of female sexual assault victims (and assault perpetrated by males) is far greater than male victims.

Several bodies and agencies have spoken and still speaking against sexual violence.

In March 2017, the United Nation Secretary-General outlined a comprehensive four-pronged strategy to prevent and respond to sexual exploitation and abuse across the United Nations system.

The elements of the strategy are to:

(a) Prioritize the rights and dignity of victims.

(b) End impunity through strengthened reporting.and investigations.

(d) Improve strategic communication for education and transparency.

Also, the UNICEF’s child protection program aims to provide preventive and response interventions for children who are victims of, or at risk from violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation through strengthened child protection systems. The program works with key state ministries and other partners, to ensure that identified children facing protection risks receive integrated case management and referral to specialized services.

The program works to implement priority interventions including:

– Strengthened legislative and institutional frameworks to protect children that are vulnerable and exposed to violence, abuse, and exploitation.

– Strengthened capacities of Government and key stakeholders, including social welfare and justice services that prevent and respond to violence against children.

– Supporting the development, coordination, and implementation of an inter-sectoral national social norms change strategy to end violence against children including child marriage, FGM/C and other harmful traditional practices.

– Strengthening the birth registration system to scale up the registration of children under age five years, with a focus on children under one.

– Ensuring children in humanitarian situations have timely and sustained access to quality preventive and responsive child protection services.

The public also plays a significant role by enlightening children on a preventive measure to avoid sexual abuse and by not stigmatizing those who have fallen victims but rather supporting them to overcome the trauma.

At the African Women in Leadership Organisation, we reiterate our commitment against sexual violence in all its forms while assisting victims to overcome the trauma

AWLO WHICH IS IN THE VANGUARD OF DRIVING WOMEN’S SUSTAINABLE EMPOWERMENT AND LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT IS HEREBY TAKING OUR EMINENT STANCE ON THE NEFARIOUS ISSUE OF RAPE AS FOLLOWSTHE AWLO CONCEPTUAL STANCE ON RAPE INCIDENCE.:

We consider the rising incidence of rape as a slap in the face of the global empowerment struggle for inclusion of women in the Mainstream, and in Leadership and Governance. It is a hate crime much more than a violation of human rights. It negates every concept of gender parity or narrowing the gender gap, and it is a negative statement on the upliftment of women.

The solution should be sought multi-dimensionally, Psychologically, Spiritually, educationally and legislatively.

We in AWLO consider rape as a height of misogyny and a brutish expression of control, domination, subjugation, and torture. It is also a calculated expression by the misogynist to rob a woman of every self-esteem, and vestige of dignity.

We are aware that this evil practice cuts across creed, race, age, and status and that this is a malaise that negates the restraint and morality often preached by religious creeds. We, therefore, regret that rape continues to expose the fact that the gender inequality problem is beyond the social facade. It is in the depth of human psychology and the solution should not only be by legislation, civil rights activist and jurisprudence, but by scientific inquiry necessitating more research and not just imprisonment.

We understand that some rapists appear normal, but they are not because they are often hijacked by their limbic brain short-circuiting reasoning and limited self-control. There is room for psychiatric test for men in sensitive positions and much more a preemptive measure.

This is food for thought for He-for-She movement because most rape cases are perpetrated by men.

Despite the secular nature of governance, we believe that any religious cleric or official in governance caught in proven rape should immediately be considered a dire risk to the peace and security of our society and should be locked away. We need to uphold the value of society against rape and stop the injustice against women.

Join us on the 25th of July as we all convene in support for the HeforShe United Nation Solidarity Movement for Gender Equality.
Theme: A Pledge to Gender Parity

Venue: Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja Lagos.

Time: 9:00am

News

Court Vacates Order for Arrest of Fubara’s CoS, Says It’s Mere Academic Exercise

Published

23 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Eric

The Order of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja for the arrest of Edison Ehie, the Chief of Staff to the Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara and granted by Justice Emeka Nwite on the 31st of January, 2024, has been set aside, today, 25th April, 2024.

Justice Emeka Nwite had on January 31 ordered Ehie’s arrest in connection with the burning of the Rivers State House of Assembly on October 30, 2023.

The police, in the charges, alleged that Ehie and five others masterminded the bombing of the Rivers State House of Assembly amid a plot to impeach Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara.

The five others are Jinjiri Bala, Happy Benedict, Progress Joseph, Adokiye Oyagiri, and Chibuike Peter, alias Rambo.

Justice Emeka Nwite while reading the ruling setting aside the order given by the court against Eddison Ehie declaring him wanted and granting an order of arrest said it as now becoming a mere academic exercise.

The judge further granted same to the 2nd-5th Defendant/Applicant in same suit.

Eddison Ehie had a team of representation including Falana SAN, Wole Oladoye SAN, Dr Bimpe Ajegbomogun and Barr. Asmau Yakubu

Though Ehie’s name was mentioned in the counts, he was not listed among the defendants.

He said, “He was never invited by the police for anything. All that he saw was that they filed a charge; they mentioned his name in four out of seven charges for murder and arson.”

Aladedoye also argued that it was strange that the Inspector-General of Police left all the courts in Rivers State, where the alleged offences were committed, to file an application before the Federal High Court in Abuja.

“Your Lordship has no jurisdiction to entertain the matter here, “Aladedoye said.

Counsel for the other defendants, Femi Falana (SAN), said the crime his clients were alleged to have committed were state offences.

In the application it was stated that “What is disclosed are state offences; it is our submission that this court cannot exercise any jurisdiction in state offences without the fiat of the Attorney General of Rivers State.”

News

Dana Air Confirms Runway Excursion Involving It’s Aircraft, Says Passengers, Crew Safe

Published

3 days ago

April 23, 2024

Eric

The management of Dana Air has, in a statement on Tuesday, confirmed reports that one of its aircraft with registration number 5N BKI skidded off the runway at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos on Tuesday morning.

While expressing regret that the aircraft which flew from Abuja to Lagos, skidded off the runway in an attempt to land, it expressed relief that no casualty was recorded, stating that it had informed the Accident Investigation Bureau and the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority of the incident.

The statement read, “Dana Air regrets to inform the public of a runway incursion involving one of our aircraft, registration number 5N BKI, which was flying from Abuja to Lagos today 23/04/24

“We are relieved to confirm that all 83 passengers and crew onboard the flight disembarked safely without injuries or scare as the crew handled the situation with utmost professionalism.”

“We have also updated the AIB and NCAA on the incident and the aircraft involved has been grounded by our maintenance team for further investigation.”

News

FG Mulls Review of Admission Age into Nigerian Universities

Published

4 days ago

April 22, 2024

Eric

The Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, has hinted that the Federal government would review age requirement for admission into tertiary institutions in the country.

The minister, who pegged 18 years as benchmark for admission into universities, advised parents not to push their underage wards to higher institutions, especially university education, below the age of 18.

Mamman spoke to journlaits after monitoring the ongoing Unified Tertiary matriculation Examination, UTME, in some of the centres in Abuja.

The minister said he is not happy with the age of some candidates that applied to write the examination, noting that they are still far before required age to seek admission into universities.

He, however, applauded the conduct of the examination, describing it as peaceful just as he said irregularities where were visibly noticeable in the past, has drastically reduced.

He said: “The examination process is seamless. The environment is comfortable for students. That’s how it should be, especially with the use of technology in our affairs and the educational system. It makes life easy for everybody and seamless.

“As we know, this examination is going on throughout the country. It is being monitored everywhere seamlessly and from the report I have heard, the malpractice level is very low, just a 100 out of 1.2million.It is the use of technology that has made that happen, so this is very good.

“The other thing, which we noticed, is the age of those who have applied to go to the university. Some of them are really too young. We are going to look at it because they are too young to understand what the university education is all about.

“That’s the stage when students migrate from a controlled environment where they are in charge of their own affairs. So if they are too young, they won’t be able to manage properly.

“That accounts to some of the problems we are seeing in the universities.

“We are going to look at that. 18 is the entry age for university. But you will see students, 15, 16, going to the examination. It is not good for us. Parents should be encouraged not to push their wards, children too much.”

He hinted that beneficiaries of the Federal government students loan will cut across both higher education and skill acquisition, saying it was important that “students who are not being able to proceed to tertiary education, should be able to have a meaningful life even after secondary school, even primary education actually.”

According to him, the percentage of admission out of the registered number of candidates that applied, is “about 20 percent- universities, polytechnics and colleges of educations.”

He continued: “They are our children, our wards living with us. This is why the issue of skills acquisition is very important because, any students, who is not able to proceed to tertiary education, should be able to have a meaningful life even after secondary school, even primary education actually.

“The only solution to that is skill; by talking skills right from the time they entered school, for the primary school. Somebody should finish with one skill or another. That is part of the assumption of the 6-3-3-4 system.

“It is assumed that by the time a student finishes up to JSS level, he would have acquired some skills. If he does not proceed to senior secondary level, he would have acquired some skills that will help him navigate life and cease to be a burden on parents and society.

‘That is why skill is just the most important thing for us now. We are going to drive through the education sector for both public and private sectors, to empower the young ones.

“Tertiary education is encouraged but not every child needs to go to the university or polytechnic. It is mandatory and government is in support and there is a constitutional requirement to educate every Nigerian child up to that level of education. But with the introduction of the Student Loan Scheme, access will not be a problem.

“Parents will now be supported both for tertiary and even the skills we are talking about. That is one of the most important policies government has been able to provide,” he added.