President Muhammadu Buhari led administration has announced the immediate inauguration of a Gender-Based Violence Management Committee.
Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, who disclosed this in a statement made available to DAILY POST on Thursday, condemned the prevalent and rising incidence of rape and sexual assault in the country.
Malami said incidents of rape cases in the country have increased dramatically in the last few weeks, resulting in the brutal murder of some victims, to which the development has sparked outrage in Nigeria and abroad.
The minister noted the Federal Ministry of Justice has identified with calls for national response against rape and sexual assault in the country.
Malami said in fulfillment of the Ministry’s mandate and its determination to urgently address this heinous crime, his office “will immediately inaugurate an Inter-Ministerial Gender-Based Violence Management Committee”.
He said: “The committee will include skilled officers drawn from Federal Ministry of Justice, Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, Federal Ministry of Health, National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, National Human Rights Commission, Nigerian Legal Aid Council, Nigeria Police Force Civil Society Organisations, among others.”
The committee will be charged with proffering a synchronized approach to address all forms of violence against women and children in the country.