The Federal Government has vowed to punish women who protect husbands that molest their children.
Mrs Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, the Minister of Women Affairs who said this, noted that the government would no longer tolerate mothers whose children have been molested.
The minister said such wives may not want their husbands to be punished but explained that the government’s interest was in the protection of the child.
Uju spoke in Abuja at a one-day awareness creation programme on: Using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to Address Gender-Based Violence (GBV), organised by the Maryam Babangida National Centre for Women Development.
She said her ministry was planning the establishment of mobile courts to be established across the country to fight cases of GBV.
“Now, we can fight for the establishment of mobile courts to help fight GBV. The President is supporting it. Women should not take the advantage of this establishment to start causing trouble or maltreating our men but give peace a chance.
⁴
“As women, we also say no to violence and no to molestation. For instance, not only would men who molest their children be taken to court, but the mothers would also be charged for negligence.
“We would no longer tolerate mothers whose children have been molested, saying they don’t want their husbands to be taken to court, because our interest is in the child.
“We want to work towards women being well empowered; no more handouts. Why things have not been working in this country is because they kept us aside. The President is a ‘he for she’. So, we are going to capitalise on it and achieve what we want so that women can come on board. “So, now, we have to start encouraging our girls to go into anything they want to do.”
