Gender based violence: Ogun state governor’s wife canvasses stiffer penalty for culprits
Wife of Ogun State Governor, Mrs Bamidele Abiodun, has urged for stiffer penalty for perpetrators of domestic and gender based violence accross the nation, as a panacea to curb the crime.
She also urged every stakeholders in the war against domestic violence to give a robust information on the victims of domestic and gender based violence, stressing that if such is done in all communities, the perpetrators would think twice before committing such heinous crimes.
Mrs Abiodun, who is the chairperson of the committee set up by the state government to check the subjugation and oppression of women gave the advice at the launch of the Ota Police Family Support Unit (FSU), at Sango Area Command.
She said for now those who engaged in domestic violence do so as there is a societal lukewarm attitude towards gender based violence.
She said a good number of persons erroneously see such violence as a normal male and female relationship.
Mrs Abiodun enjoined a synergy amongst Law Enforcement Agencies, Non–Governmental Organizations, NGOs and Stakeholders in fighting against gender based violence to put more efforts in ensuring that the perpetrators and brought to Justice.
She gave kudos to the Ogun state Commissioner of Police, Mr Edward Awolowo Ajogun and the Ota police Area Commander, Mr Monday Agbonika, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, ACP, for the FSU initiative.
While declaring the Unit open, Mrs Abiodun described the Unit as first of its kind in Ogun state.
The first Lady was full of praises for CP Ajogun and his officers, as she eulogised them for remaining resolute and calm in the face of provocation, wanton destruction of lives and property during last month #EndSARS protest hijacked by hoodlums in some parts of the country.
Speaking, the Olota of Ota, Oba Abdulkareem Obalanlege appealed to Judges in Nigeria to give stiffer punishment to big and influential members of the society, not only to serve as deterrent to others, but also check smaller members of the society from committing domestic and other related crimes.
According to him, the bigger you are in other civilised climes, the heavier the punishment you get in cases of domestic and gender based violence.
In his remarks, Agbonika said when he reported at Ota as the Area Commander last year, he realised that there was high incidence of gender based and domestic violence cases in that community.
He said cases were not being reported because of stigimatasation and other similar consideration the reason he approached highly placed individuals, corporate bodies, officials of various Ministries to join hands with the police in the area to build a befitting facility for treating gender based and domestic violence.
He appealed to the Ogun state government to assist the Ota FSU with a vehicle to augument the only existing vehicle at the disposal of the unit.
He described the FSU as an upgrade of the Juvenile Welfare Center, JWC.
Mrs Millicent Abibat Ajogun, the wife of the Ogun state police boss and chairperson of Police Officers Wives Association, POWA, commended Agbonika for the initiative.
She described the initiative as “unique , unprecedented which can’t be compared with what is obtainable in other places”.
Other dignitaries who attended the event are traditional rulers, the clerics, officials of Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, Area Commander, the Ota TRACE Commander, Adekunle Ajibade and representatives of NGOs.
Chairman of Ota Police Community Relations Committee, PCRC, Mr Patrick Oyegbade, Dr Akin Atere, Bishop of Anglican Communion, Ota Diocese, and representative of the member of the House of Representatives for Ewekoro/Ifon Constituency, Hon Isiake Ibrahim.
Others include Oba of Owode-, Oba Wasiu Akanni and Oba Kenneth Adeyemi, the Onijana of Ijana. Not left out are, Divisional Police Officers ,DPOs, senior and junior police officers under the jurisdiction of the Ota police area command and market women learders.