By Lizzy Carr, Bauchi
Mrs Aisha Mohammed and wife of Bauchi state governor has advised Nigerian women to inculcate the values of respect for girl-child and women in their male children.
She gave the advise at the commemoration of International Women’s Day held at the Banquet Hall of Government House in Bauchi on Tuesday.
According to her, “disrespect for women starts from the home-front where parents discriminate in household chores; making the girl-child to do most of the work while the male-child walk around the house without any specific chores assigned to him thereby giving the impression that they are superior to their female siblings.
“If a male-child grows up in such setting, there is every tendency he would always see women as second fiddle, because he got that impression right from when he was small,” Mohammed said.
She called on women to disabuse their minds from envy, jealousy and deceit against fellow women, especially those who have excelled in their various vocations.
“The society sees women as architects of their own problems despite their numerical strength in politics. Instead of us to support women in their quest for elective positions, most of the women always go behind to sabotage such aspirations,” she stressed.
Mohammed urged women to unite in order to make their voices heard in all aspects of the society.
The State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Child Development, Hajara Gidado said experts have been invited to re-enlighten them on issues that affect women.
Gidado noted that the administration of governor Bala Mohammed has been favourable to women in the state as could be seen in his appointments.
“I can say without any fear of contradiction that the current administration has the highest number of women representations in the state executive council in recent years. Our governor is gender sensitive”.
In a presentation titled “Bridging Impunity Gap and Mitigating the Dynamics of SGBV,” the Bauchi State Chairperson of Federation of Women Lawyers in Nigeria (FIDA), Barrister Fatima Abubakar identified impunity as one of the major cause of gender violence in communities.
Abubakar said that lack of accountability encourages repetition of crimes because perpetrators feel free to commit further offences without fear of punishment, which inflicts additional suffering on victims of Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV).
“Most survivors of SGBV are usually afraid to report to their families or law enforcement agencies because in most cases the alleged perpetrators are either families, neighbours or persons who engage in reprisals.”
Other factors that bring about impunity in perpetrating SGBV, she said, include social stigmatization and pressures from family to drop the charges.
To limit or avoid such challenges, Abubakar explained the need for sustained sensitization to women on their rights and available avenue for enforcement, and the establishment of a platform were victims can access.
“Government at all levels, must put in place policies and take practical measures to prevent and combat SGBV in our society.”
In her goodwill message, Bauchi State Chairperson of National Council of Women Society (NCWS), Barrister Shafa’u Ladan commended the state government for assenting to the violence against person’s prohibition VAPP law that stipulates life sentence for culprits of SGBV.
She called on the women to avail themselves the opportunity by seeking redress in the courts of law.
The event witnessed the distribution of empowerment items, including sewing and grinding machines to some selected vulnerable beneficiaries.
