The Minister for Women Affairs, Mrs Uju Ohanenye says federal government is committed to ensuring that all states key into the Gender Based Violence National dashboard reportage of the country.
Mrs Ohanenye stated this in Umuahia during a two-day sensitization/step-down training on Gender-Based Violence workshop organized by the Office of the Wife of the Governor of Abia state in collaboration with the Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Abia state and the federal Ministry of Women affairs.
The Minister represented by the Director of Planning and Research in the Ministry, Mr Tony Iwere noted that there is a need for survivors of gender based violence to report perpetrators of the act to relevant authorities to ensure adequate punishments for them.
She pointed out that no religious leader or traditional ruler has any right to stop any case of rape or defilement stating that is only the court that has the mandate to handle the case
Earlier in her welcome speech, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Abia state, Mrs Ngozi Felix stated that the training was organized to gather Gender Based Violence stakeholders who have kin desire in the fight against all matters relating to gender-based violence as well as proffer channel of reportage to the National dashboard in order for the state to be heard.
She explained that gender-based violence could come in the form of physical, verbal, psychological, sexual and domestic violence.
She frowned at the culture of silence which has continued to abate the crime and harped on the need to formulate a structure that will continue to engage all stakeholders for a consistent conversation towards charting a course to nip the ugly monster in the bud.
She stressed the need to rid the society of people who are threatening her peace and cautioned on the need to shun all vices and shenanigans of corruption if the fight must be won.
She urged all hands to be on deck in the fight against GBV in the state
In their various Goodwill messages, the representatives of the Judiciary, the Police, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps and some Civil Society Organizations expressed concern that gender base violence is been under reported in the state and listed some of the reasons for the underreportage of GBV to include stigma and shames survivals face, lack of proper awareness, cultural norms of the society and Psychological impact survivals of GBV face.
Correspondent reports that over two hundred participants attended the workshop.
