By Umar Sa’id, Bauchi
The Bauchi State Government through the Action Committee on Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) has secured convictions of over 80 perpetrators of sexual abuse in the state.
This was disclosed by the chairperson of the committee and first lady of the State, Hajiya Aisha Bala Mohammed while speaking with journalists over the weekend in Bauchi.
She said the moral decadence that leads to such negative acts mostly was as a result of the social norms and values at the family level, as well as the society at large.
The first lady explained that the sexual related cases are so disturbing, especially in a case of a father impregnating his biological daughter twice, saying such behavior beats all sense of reasoning about how some human beings have degenerated into monsters.
“The rapes within the family circles are also another cankerworm that societies are being faced with. The victims of such rapes are not the girls alone, but the boys fall victims too”, she said.
She pointed out that not all cases of SGBV are taken to the courts for necessary prosecution because of their gravity which are just domestic issues resulting from the harsh economic conditions and those cases were resolved by the committee without necessarily taking it to the court of law.
“We resolve such minor cases through empowering the couples to support their families, with a stern warning to the husbands to live up to their responsibilities as heads of their households”, she explained.
The first lady further stated that the committee provides shelter, psychosocial support and accelerated medical care to victims of SGBV with a view to make them reunite with the society to continue with their normal life.