The House of Representatives spent over two hours on Thursday to debate the rising spate of sexual violence across Nigeria, calling for stricter measures to check the crime.
A member, Mr Rotimi Agunsoye, had moved a motion titled, ‘The Need to Condemn the Rising Cases of Sexual Violence and Other Social Vices Against Women, and Police Brutality: Justice for Uwa Omozuwa, Tina Ezekwe and Others.’
The House, based on adoption of the motion, urged the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, to “immediately cause investigations into the cases of Uwa Omozuwa, Tina Ezekwe, the reported rape of minor in Jigawa State, as well as all other reported cases of violence against women, with a bid to bringing the criminals to justice.”
Punishments recommended for rapists by the lawmakers, while debating the motion, included castration, death sentence and amputation.
The House, however, voted on only one of the recommendations, castration, which was rejected by the lawmakers.
Last week, a 100-level student of the University of Benin was raped to death at a parish of The Redeemed Christian Church of God in Benin. On Monday, a student of the Federal College of Animal and Production Technology, Ibadan, Oyo State, Brakat Bello, suffered the same fate.
Also on Monday, three armed men gang-raped a 17-year-old hawker at Oja Oba Market in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital.
Angered by the rising cases of rape, the House urged the Federal Government to launch a more effective campaign against it and other violence against women and girls.
Also, the House “mandates all members to dress in black at the next sitting, show solidarity with the victims: Uwa Omozuwa, Tina Ezekwe and others.”
However, the lawmakers voted against a prayer seeking to recommend castration for rapists.
A member, Mr James Faleke, had recommended that persons found guilty of raping minors should be castrated.
Just before the prayer was subjected to voice vote, the Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, asked what would happen to an older female who raped a younger male.
The comment had generated a noise in the chamber. Putting the prayer to vote, the nays had it.
The resolutions were referred to the committees on Women Affairs, Human Rights and Justice, which were given four weeks to follow up on the cases and report back to the House.
