Senator Kingibe calls for action against Gender Based Violence

…Says Senate rolling out five bills to check the scourge

 

The rising menace of violence against women is a trend that must be checked and reverse, says Senator Ireti Kingibe, the Senator representing the Federal Capital Territory(FCT), Abuja.

Senator Kingibe, who doubles as Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Women Affairs, made the call on Saturday peaking to during a “Walkathon,” organized in solidarity with the International Day for the elimination of Violence Against Women at the Eagles Square in Abuja.

The Walkathon at the Eagles Square held just as civil society organizations and some government agencies equally organized programmes at the Unity Fountain and other parts of the Federal Capital to call for an end to Gender Based Violence(GBV).

But the Senate, through the Senate Committee Chairman on Women Affairs, Ireti Kingibe, said everyone must support the fight against GBV.

Senator Kingibe during the Walkathon

Urging Nigerians to take firm action against GBV, Senator Kingibe said the Senate is already leading the charge with the formulation of five bills in the red chamber. She noted that gender-based bills, which in previous senates suffered setback, would be treated with priority in the 10th Senate.

She said her colleagues in the Senate and House of Representatives are united in their desire to eliminate all forms of violence particularly in the country particularly, GBV.

“Without any exaggeration, women are the backbone of this country. We are the backbone of any country. We are the backbone of the home. Can we survive with a broken backbone?”, she queried?

“Nigeria is a country that is lagging behind in all our human development indices. Therefore gender based violence must stop, and how will it stop? It is going to stop when there is proper reporting and proper consequence and collective responsibility, male and female. As you can see from the number of the organizations represented here, we have decided that women are going to unite to fight Gender Based Violence(GBV)”, she stated.

Also speaking, the Vice Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Women Affairs and former Deputy Governor of Rivers State, Dr. Iparibo Harry Banigo, said women are against any form of violence or intimidation but would want to be the best they could be, noting that the road walk was one of their ways of creating awareness and inviting the public to join in the fight.

For her part, FCT Mandate Secretary, Women Affairs, Mrs. Adedayo Benjamins-Laniyi, appreciated women for coming out en-mass for the road walk, noting that it was a way of showing their preparedness to change the narrative which posits that women do not support other women.

The minister of women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, in her speech, asked Nigerians to protect the women.
“We affirm our commitment at the UN to the fight against GBV. We are at the forefront,” she added.

Representative of the UN, Kuawu Kowsin, said the gathering was to sensitize the people on the importance of joining hands to end Gender Based Violence Against Women.

“GBV has been an issue that is not only in Nigeria but a number of countries, so the UN has joined the ministry of Women Affairs to send a message that we are together to Eliminate Violence Against Women.

“We have already taken a lot of steps in preventing GBV. We have been talking to the people in the various communities to sensitize people about the harmful consequences of GBV.

“When they become aware they will stop perpetrating this harmful practice but also there is a lot of work that is being done by the UN to assist and support the survivors of GBV psychologically and to help them to seek justice.

On whether there is any protection for men against violence he said, “There is a new law about Violence Against the people in general, this is also part of it but you know Violence Against Women is the major issue, Violence Against men is also covered.”

Barrister Louis Auta of the Network of Women With Disabilities who spoke on behalf of women and girls with Disability said they are tired of the exclusion.

“We are tired of GBV. We are tired of violence against women and the girls with Disability and we are here to say Bye-bye to GBV.”