Nosakhare Agbonigiarhuoyi
The wife of the Edo State Governor, Mrs. Betsy Obaseki, has warned that there would be no hiding place for perpetrators of gender-based violence and their accomplices in the State.
She gave the warning on Tuesday, June 14th, 2022, during a workshop to close the program themed: “Strengthening the Evidence and Response Pathways for Gender Based Violence”; which was supported by the West African Office of Ford Foundation and coordinated by the Nigerian Academy of Science (NAS).
According to the First Lady, who is also the chairperson of the Edo State Gender-based Violence Management Committee, the fight against gender-based violence is a fight to save lives as the actions of perpetrators of (GBV) destroy destinies of the victims and hold them down for the rest of their (victims’) lives.
She decried the culture of silence prevalent in the society and urged victims to speak up and report cases of GBV to the appropriate authority.
“There has been this culture of silence. People are afraid that if they speak up, the perpetrators sometimes who are people in high places or people who have connections with people in high places, would come after them.
“Some are afraid, ashamed because of the act, and because of shame, they don’t want to come out. But with our work, we are getting people to come up and to speak up, and to speak out.”
She advised: “We tell everybody in Edo State that no matter who you are, no matter how highly placed you are, if you are involved in this matter or if you attempt to cover up, you will be prosecuted.
“I keep warning people because we have many cases where they will go talk to people in government or people in society; church leaders and all that, and think that when they come to me I will plead on their behalf and listen. I warn those who come that if you attempt it, if you try it, you and the perpetrators will be prosecuted.”
Explaining the fillip given to the amended VAP Law in the State, Mrs. Obaseki said: “One of the things I ensured that we did with the law when we were reviewing it was to add the part where the accomplice, anyone who tries to cover up a case or prevent prosecution of an accused, will be joined in the case with the accused. And nobody is above the law; so this is another warning.”
In his remarks, the Governor of Edo State, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, assured that his administration had put in place the support structures needed to tackle sexual and gender-based violence in the State.
“Edo has made adequate budgetary provision to sustain the fight, we are putting in place the institutional arrangement with buildings and facilities to ensure we succeed in this fight,” he added.
He lamented that two years after Uwaila Omozuwa’s death, the police have not been able to prosecute the case, and appealed to the Inspector General of Police to use his office to ensure that investigations are concluded and the perpetrators prosecuted.
Commenting on the partnership between his government and the Nigerian Academy of Science, Obaseki said: “I recall very vividly about a year ago, when the members of the Nigerian Academy of Science paid me a courtesy call to inform me of this grant to support the fight against Gender-Based Violence, which had increased significantly as a result of Covid-19 pandemic, where many people were locked in.
“As a result, governments across the country, particularly the Federal Government and State Governments as was pointed out by the First Lady, decided to put measures in place to control and curb this scourge.
“It also became necessary to increase the synergies among the critical stakeholders in order to manage the pandemic as well as its impact on our people.”
“One year after, the outcome of that collaboration is evident in the legal and institutional reforms witnessed so far in our fight against Gender-Based violence in our State”, he added.
Obaseki further said: “It is also important to state while this workshop marks the end of the Ford Foundation Project, which, as I said, is coordinated by the Nigerian Academy of Science, Edo State has made adequate budgetary commitment that will sustain the fight against Gender Based violence, such that perpetrators will be adequately punished and survivors will get adequate care through a carefully orchestrated set up interventions.
“As has been pointed out, we are looking beyond the life of this present administration. We are putting in place the institutional arrangement, including the infrastructure to deal with GBV cases. Construction is in full gear of the GVB centre which is located in the Senator Daisy Ehanire Danjuma Centre here in the GRA.
“In fact, this morning, I paid a brief visit to see how work is progressing, and I’m very confident that before the end of this year, that building will be completed with all the amenities.”
The event was rounded off with the donation of operational vehicles to the committee by the Governor, and the launch of a training manual and Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for managing SGBV cases in the State.
