The Jigawa State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Yelwa Da’u Aliyu, has advocated strong parental and social involvement in curbing rape and other crimes against children.
Speaking during the elections of the state chapter of the Children’s Parliament in Dutse on Monday, the commissioner argued that merely enacting laws without the contributions of parents and the society in general would not eradicate rape.
Against the backdrop of the recently assented to Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act by Governor Badaru Abubakar, Hajiya Yelwa believed that tackling the problem should go beyond enactment of the law.
She said, “While it is true that the law can help in minimising crimes against children, parents and the entire society have great roles to play in protecting our children against predators.
“One way of doing that is to safeguard our children by strictly monitoring how they move about; not allowing them to get in touch with unhealthy human beings, because I believe those who perpetrate such crimes against our children are mad people; they are not proper human beings.
“So we as parents must as much as possible look after our children. We should not allow them to go to where they would be molested.”
Speaking on the constitution of the children parliament in the state, the commissioner said it was intended to groom the younger ones into responsible leaders.
She said, “They can only be responsible adult citizens if they are given the platform to express themselves, voice out their concerns and list out their challenges and how they feel.”
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