against rape.
Gbajabiamila, who described the incidence of rape in the country as a
pandemic, said every stratum of the society, including the media, has a
role to play in the fight against the pandemic.
Speaking when he granted audience to a delegation of the Movement
Against Rape and Sexual Violence (MARS-V) led by the wife of Kaduna
State governor, Hajiya Aisha Ummi el-Rufai, at the National Assembly on
Wednesday, the Speaker said the statistics on rape cases in Nigeria “is
mind-boggling.”
He said Nigerians, especially those that hold religious views on rape,
need adequate education and awareness against the rape pandemic.
“Whilst I see so many women here with you, this is a fight not just for
women. I can see some few men too, but this is a fight for all. Let a
subliminal message be sent that even though over 95 per cent of the
victims are women, let it be that it’s we, the men, that are championing
your course.
“The statistics are very alarming on the issue of rape. You hear figures
in terms of rape and gender-based violence that are mind-boggling. It’s
only a deprived mind that can engage in rape. I consider the issue of
rape as a pandemic. In my estimation, it’s a pandemic.
“The issue of rape should be treated the way Corona is treated. How do
we treat a pandemic? There has to be a frontal onslaught. The media has
a role to play. It should be in the front line. There’s a lot of work to
be done from different angles.
“In a pandemic, you look for cure. No sane man would have sexual
intercourse with a 3-month old baby. The idea alone is sickening,”
Gbajabiamila said.
The Speaker also said the Nigerian laws related to rape are weak, hence
they would not deter people from engaging in the act, calling for
stiffer penalties for offenders.
“As Muslims, we should educate our people that religion is about
perception, but there can only be one truth. It’s all about education
and awareness. We’ll continue to push hard. We’ll bring in our scholars
so that we all can be enlightened for the sake of humanity.
“Some of our laws on rape are old and need review, like many of our
laws. Some of the penalties need to be stiffer. The penalties need to
deter, but they can’t deter because they’re weak. We need to look at all
these things holistically.”
Gbajabiamila also said he believed a lot of rape cases are not reported
as victims feel ashamed to speak out, calling on them to always come
forward and speak up as that is the only way more and more cases would
be brought to public attention.
With regards to financing, the Speaker urged the movement to make a
presentation in that regard to see what can be done in the 2021 budget
to be presented to the National Assembly in September.
Earlier, Mrs el-Rufai drew the Speaker’s attention to the rising cases
of rape in the country, saying it was becoming alarming and that urgent
action needed to be taken.
She said the current trend is a situation where “our women are raped to
death and butchered even in churches and mosques where God is
worshipped.”
Their main reasons for visiting the Speaker, she said, were to seek his
help, ask questions, seek justice and challenge the status quo, noting
that statistics have shown that 717 reported rape cases and 7,170
unreported ones occurred in Nigeria within five months.
She said while over 7,000 lives have been brutalised, with some
destroyed and others terminated, perpetrators of such heinous acts are
not brought to justice even as the laws appear to the lenient.
Speaker, House of Representatives, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila with the Wife
of the Kaduna State Governor, Aisha Ummi El-Rufai who led the Movement
Against Rape & Sexual Violence ( MARS-V) to a courtesy visit to the
Speaker over rising rape cases in the Country at the National Assembly
on 15th July, 2020.