Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State on
Monday recommended a minimum sentence
of 25 years for rapists, saying rape should
not be met with light sentencing.
Ambode made the recommendation during a
symbolic walk against domestic and sexual
violence at Alausa.
“It is highly recommended. We need new
laws which will respond adequately to the
nature and occurrences of this era.
“Domestic violence is a crime and should be
treated as such. The Protection against
Domestic Violence Law, 2007 should,
therefore, be amended accordingly,” he said.
Ambode urged the Nigeria Police Force,
which was usually the first point of call, to
strive to be more professional and ensure
proper investigation of reported cases by
grooming specialist officers in that regard.
“As the saying goes, the best time to plant a
tree was 20 years ago; the next best time is
now.
“ We firmly believe that the actions we take
today will be the seeds sown for a brighter
future for our women and indeed, our
children.
“We believe our state can continue to
pioneer in this agenda and become a
benchmark not just in Nigeria, but globally,”
he said.
The governor said that a lot of progress had
been made in protecting the rights of women
and the girl-child, and against “oppression of
the female gender’’, there was still so much
to be done.
“We need to ask ourselves the hard
question: for this course we honour today,
how can we truly ensure we are walking the
talk?
“In our state, there has been a significant
increase in formal and informal reporting of
domestic and sexual violence cases, but
contrary to what it appears to be, this
menace is not a recent development.
“These occurrences have been around for
years, but they were seen as norms because
nobody spoke out against them, and such
acts were overlooked based on misguided
definitions of gender roles.
“What we are tackling today is an almost
innate culture which relegates women to the
background, and forces them to suffer in
silence.
“In Lagos, we are waging a war against this
culture and we will do everything within our
power to transform ours to a culture of
equality, respect and dignity for all.
“It is a journey of radical transformation, and
our government is wholly committed to
seeing it through,” he said.
Ambode said that the state’s Domestic and
Sexual Violence Response Team had
executed various interventions and initiatives
as regards fighting sexual and gender-based
violence.
“We are not just reactive in helping
survivors, but also taking aggressive steps to
prevent future occurrences.
“Our aim is to build a system of trust and
accountability, where survivors are
encouraged to speak out and potential
perpetrators are discouraged to commit
future acts,” he said.