To better protect children and improve girl-child education, some stakeholders in Gombe State have appealed to the state government to expedite action towards the domestication of the Child Rights Act.
They made the call yesterday in Gombe during the inauguration of a scholarship scheme for 50 girls sponsored by the immediate past president of the Court of Appeal, retired Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa.
The scholarship scheme is under her foundation – ADDA Girl Education Foundation (AGEF).
Justice Hannatu Sankey, the Presiding Justice, Court of Appeal, Gombe Division, said in a society where girls, children and women were violated and subjected to abuse, post-traumatic distress disorder would affect their upbringing.
Sankey, the keynote speaker, who presented a paper on the topic: “The Need for a Girl-Child to be Educated to Reach Leadership Position,” said laws were needed to protect and enforce children’s right.
“If laws are put in place to protect children and enforce their rights, I believe that courts will proactively and stringently enforce these laws.
“This will also ensure that our children who are the future of this nation, are protected from predators as well as shielded from any failure on the part of parents, guardians, teachers and the system in general,” said Sankey.
She stated that since cases of rape, sexual assault and violence against the girl-child were widespread and on the increase, it had become imperative to have a law to address the menace.
Sankey said girls must be made to feel safe to attend schools in order to excel and impact positively in the developmental strides of the country.
“I call on states that make up the federation which are yet to domesticate the Child Rights Act passed since 2003 by the National Assembly, to do so without delay.
“In order to better protect the rights of the girl-child in the country the act should be domesticated,” Sankey noted.
Citing a recent publication on the non-domestication of the act in the state, she said since the bill had passed first and second reading, the states’ assemblies should expedite action in order to pass it.
While commending Bulkachuwa, Sankey said the event was a reminder of “our responsibility to give girls the importance and protection they deserved and work together for happier lives.”
Sankey, also the President of the National Association of Women Judges in Nigeria (NAWJN), said the scholarship would help address challenges faced by the girl-child seeking education.
On her part, Bulkachuwa said she added her voice to the call for the domestication of the act to better protect the girl-child and children generally in the state.
She said her gesture was aimed at giving back to the society by ensuring that girls from the state were educated to hold strategic leadership positions.
“Given the number of girls in this state, it becomes crucial to pay attention to the status of the girl-child.
“We believe in their potential and the power of education to unleash it. That’s why we are here today,” she stated.
The Tide source reports that 50 girls from Nafada Local Government Area of the state were empowered with school supplies, tuition fees, breakfast and monthly stipends.