Delta Govt pledges commitment to rights of women, children

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June 23, 2016 12:34 PM

Okowa made the remarks when he received the President of Women Arise for Change Initiative, Dr Joe Okei-Odumakin, who paid him a courtesy visit in Asaba.

Delta Govt. pledges commitment to rights of women, children

Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta on Wednesday expressed the state government’s commitment to protect the rights of women and children in the state.

Okowa made the remarks when he received the President of Women Arise for Change Initiative, Dr Joe Okei-Odumakin, who paid him a courtesy visit in Asaba.

He said that the Child Rights Act was domesticated in Delta in 2009 and that as a state, the Act would be diligently implemented.

He added that ``we intend to implement the Act diligently, if anybody is involved in the abuse of women and children, the person must stop, because we will take such issue up and the person will be prosecuted.

``We must do what we can to safeguard the future of our children because it appears that many families have forgotten their roles right from the family level; it seems that values are lost.

``As you carry on with your social advocacy, a lot needs to be done for families to play their roles of bringing up well trained children.''

The governor, however, lamented situations where children grow up without feeling pains or not afraid of inflicting pains on others.

He cautioned against any form of violence on children, women and less privileged in the society, adding that parents should ensure proper upbringing of their children and wards.

He assured that government would take up any issue that concerned gender based violence and child abuse.

He commended Okei-Odumakin for her organisation’s intervention to reduce violence against children, women and the less privileged in the society.

Earlier, Okei-Odumakin, who did a presentation on gender-based violence in the country, called on the governor to establish centres to handle such cases in the state.

She, however, disclosed that her team was in the state to present policy guidelines on gender-based violence on young persons in Nigeria and to get the state to key into the programme.

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