TRENDING HASHTAGS OR STRENGTHENING OUR INSTITUTIONS?
Every day on the internet, we wake up to different stories, some are too good while some will make you wonder where humanity is heading to. In Nigeria, the stories are not different, from police brutality to unimaginable corrupt practice and this week, it is the everyday occurrences of rape from Edo to Jigawa and Oyo State.
Rape is not alien to the Nigerian society, in fact, 1 out of every 4 Nigerian girls has been sexually abused in her lifetime. Nigerians through their various social media handle have been clamouring for an end in the crime and also punishment for the perpetrators. Instead of trending hashtags every day and making these occurrences a norm, it is high time the government and her institutions step up their game and fight this ‘normal’ vice.
The Nigerian Police should step up their game and become more dedicated in handling Rape cases and put in more efforts in fighting the crime and not asking for ‘Mobilisation Fees’ or making the victims doubt their strategies. Many victims will either drink water and sleep than going to the police.
What is the need for all the biometric capture by Banks, NIMC, INEC, JAMB, FIRS and others if they are not used in tracking and fighting crime? If people know they can easily be linked to a crime because of their fingerprint, they will either be too careful or not commit the crime at all. Why is there no central biometric database in Nigeria? Is there any forensic lab in the police for these things?
What has the National orientation Agency done with respect to these increasing cases of rape in Nigeria? Are there any plans by the Ministry of education to include courses that will reflect sex education in the curriculum? Is there a detailed curriculum that is dedicated to sex education and enlightening them from an early age the effects of rape and urges them to open up when they feel they have been raped?
We have a judiciary system that delays justice, this gives the perpetrators the mindset of ‘NOTHING WIL HAPPEN’.What is the legislature doing about rape and false rape accusation and violence against women in Nigeria? The case of Senator Elisha is still fresh in the mind of Nigerians.
The increasing number of cases and victims opening up now on Twitter because of the trending hashtags show that the institutions that were meant to protect the citizens have done little or nothing. This has lead to a lack of confidence on the side of the citizens and given the perpatrators a cruise to act on.
