Headlines
House rejects castration as NAPTIP promises to name and shame rapists
BY NICHOLAS ABE
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) says names and photos of rapists in the country would soon be published and has therefore urged Nigerians to report cases of rape within their vicinity to the agency or the nearest police station.
This comes on a day the House of Representatives voted against a prayer seeking to recommend castration as punishment for rapists.
Following the rising cases of rape in the country, NAPTIP Director-General, Julie Okah-Donli, said on Thursday in Abuja that reporting cases of rape is the only way to curtail the abominable act, adding that the agency will act on reported cases.
She said, “Rapists are now getting away with their illicit acts along with murder; these cases of domestic servitude are cases that take place behind closed doors.
“Our job in NAPTIP is to protect Nigerian men and women, we are not going to compromise our work if they report such cases and we will ensure justice is done.
“Rape cases are not reported because of stigmatisation of the victims and this makes the cases rise. And very soon, the names of rapists will be published with their pictures in the media.”
Okah-Donli said the Sex Offenders’ Register had already been opened in the agency where the names of rape perpetrators were documented for further actions.
READ: 10,000 Nigerian girls trafficked to Burkina Faso, forced into prostitution – Ambassador
But a prayer by Representative James Faleke that persons found guilty of rape should be castrated failed to sail through, even after the House had considered and adopted a motion on the rising cases of sexual violence in Nigeria.
Just before Faleke’s prayer was subjected to a voice vote, Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, threw up a riddle that sent the House into commotion. He had asked what would happen to an older female who rapes a younger male.
Gbajabiamila’s observation generated noise in the chamber, according to a report by The PUNCH.
When the confusion settled, the ‘Nays’ carried the day. The House only resolved to honour victims of sexual violence in Nigeria by dressing in black attire on the next legislative day.
The House is expected to sit on Tuesday.