A Women pressure group has written the leadership of National Assembly on the urgent need for the lawmakers to address the incessant rape and killing cases in the country.
The group under the aegis of Women Entrepreneurs and Professionals Development Network appealed to the lawmakers to urgently move to ensure that the motion for the death sentence is passed into law.
The Global Convener, Iyalode Alaba Lawson, in the letter titled, ’Enough is Enough’ and dated, Tuesday June 16, 2020 and addressed to Senate President, Ahmed Lawan and Speaker House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, , emphasised that, this is very important matter of the utmost urgency, “as lives of our daughters, sons and indeed everybody are at risk. It could be the turn of anybody tomorrow”.
The letter was also forwarded to former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
The letter was accompanied with video clips of some rape cases, stated that it all started as a small pebble, noting that it has become mountainous boulders seeking to crush the social and moral fabric of the country.
“We are referring to the alarming issue of rape and defilement that have ballooned into monstrous proportions. Hardly a second goes by, that a minor is not raped by an individual or gang raped by multiple members of a gang.
“Nobody is spared, the old, the young, even babies, day old babies and to make matters worse, the victims’ lives are often terminated. Their lives are snuffed out after being desecrated and defiled by these nefarious elements.”
Further, it says “astonishingly, the male gender is not left out of the whole mess”, adding that there is also an astronomical increase in the rate of under-aged boys defiled both by men and women.
The group stressed that these experiences “traumatise the victims for the rest of their lives, even with proper counselling, if their lives are not terminated.”
“This simply cannot stand. We cannot afford to allow this to continue in our society, thus, we solicit your help in mitigating this growing menace by asking for the maximum penalty of death for rapists. This, we believe will help in deterring would-be rapists. Rapists are like murderers because they take away the lives of their victims both literally and figuratively”.Other signatories to the letter include: Chief (Mrs) Anita Nana Okuribido, Mrs Affi Ibanga, Mrs Mimy Bawa-Allah, Mrs Regina Obasa, Barrister Joanne Miller-Egboh, Ms Omotola Omole,Mrs Norah Ajoke Hollins, Mrs Annah Akpan, Mrs Edith Lawal and Mrs Ifeyinwa Adesida
