Nigeria: Women group Umuada Igbo urges government to declare emergency on rape

The prominent women group of Nigeria, Umuada Igbo, has called on the Federal and state governments to declare a state of emergency on rape and other forms of gender-based violence, saying that it would help to address the rising cases of the menace in the country, according to a news report by Today.

According to the President-General and founder of Umuada Igbo, Nigeria and Diaspora, Lolo Kate Ezeofor, the ugly incidents of rape has become a cankerworm in the society and should be drastically and urgently tackled.

Ezeofor who spoke to journalists in Enugu, lamented the rising cases of reports of children being defiled, saying that it has become a source of worry to parents and other Nigerians.

She called on the National Assembly to make a law stipulating stiffer penalties for rapists, insisting that they constitute a serious nuisance and embarrassment to the society.

“Rape is not good at all. Can you imagine a girl child; woman going on her business, a man jumps on her and start raping her without her consent?

“Sometimes, the victim ends up with a disease, pregnancy, or death. The lady is dehumanized and the trauma is there forever; the victim may live with it all the days of her life.

“I am calling on Federal Government, all the State Government, and National Assembly to really see what they can do to reduce rape saga. It is causing a lot of problems in society."