Time to stop early marriage

The current public outrage against child mar­riage in Nigeria has continued to reverberate for good reasons. For too long, the girl child has sufferred horrendous sexual violations and exploitations, under the guise of religion and culture.
Without doubt, Ese Oruru’s travails alleg­edly in the hands of Yunusa Dahiru of Kano State and similar cases have, more than else, exposed the vulnerability of minors, particu­larly the females to sexual abuse.


The increasing cases of kidnapping and forceful ‘marriage’ and conversion of young christian girls allegedly in sharia compliant states, is clearly unacceptable and must be ad­dressed urgently.
It is incontrovertible that many girls are liv­ing on the brink, as their childhood is truncat­ed by obnoxious practices, in some sections of the country.


Recently a bill, that sought to address these gender inequalities and related issues, by the senate was shot down, as in previous at­tempts, by some senators over religious con­siderations.
Again many Nigerians vehemently con­demned this move, as a major set-back to the nation and a disservice to women. Its quite sad that 21st century Nigeria still upholds medi­eval tenets that encourage all forms of pedo­phile and sexual crimes that make the country a laughing stock in the comity of nations.


Nigeria is currently inundated by terrorism, sectarian hostilities, social woes and econom­ic crises, hence can ill-afford to court acts ca­pable of worsening religious tension. The cur­rent administration must uphold the country’s secularity, by tackling decisively any action or law that is contrary to the nation’s con­stitution and international treaties on human rights.
The failure of successive governments to domesticate many of these inalienable rights particularly the benchmarks on rights of women and children is an aberration.


United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) describes child marriage as ‘a human rights violation, which has been outlawed by several international agreements including the Con­vention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), and Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).’ 
The agency in its 2015 Report said: ‘Child marriage, is a toxic product of culture, gender inequality, poverty, illiteracy. Government must work with civil society groups, communties and international partners to scale-up access of girls to education, health information and ser­vices as well as life-skills training.’
It also harped on the need for developing countries ‘to enforce existing laws which stip­ulate 18 as the legal age for marriage and be­trothal.’
Though some states have passed the 2003 Child’s Rights Act, in line with CRC, which clearly prohibits child marriage and betrothal, many have not, while others have reduced the age of a child to 15 or less to accommodate the practice of early marriage.


Apart from legislation, child rights advo­cates and educationists have stressed the need to tackle rural poverty and illiteracy as well as ‘religious and cultural norms anachronistic to the lives of children.’ A human rights activist Mr Ochanga Ogan who expressed worry over the plight of Nigerian children said: ‘the coun­try currently bears outrageous and alarming records in global development demographics.’
Said he: ‘It is no longer news that the coun­try has one of the highest child bride rates, as about 43 percent of Nigerian girls marry before age 18, with the prevalence of about 70 percent in the North-West and North-East and about 10 percent in the South-East.’


The country’s over 10.5 million out-of-school kids is not only unsettling, but a global concern. Meanwhile, the nation continues to grapple with a high burden and socio- cultural dynamics of high infant and maternal mortality.’
Obviously this dismal performance in virtu­ally all spheres of the global development radar is a direct consequence of obnoxious traditions and practices that inadvertently circumvent the rights of its citizens, particularly the girl child.
The consensus opinion across Nigeria is that child marriage is ‘not only retrogressive and reprehensible, but inherently evil, hence the demand to scrap it through effective monitor­ing, law enforcement and grassroots enlight­enment campaigns.


Many child brides are neither physically nor psychologically matured for marriage and motherhood. As a result, some of them are sus­ceptible to pregnancy-related complications, as well as malnutrition, bleeding, Vesico-Vagina Fistula(VVF), Recto-Vagina Fistula(RVF) and depression, among others.
In addition early marriage undermines the development, education, health and full po­tentials of victims. Several international and national legal frameworks place a huge man­date and responsibility on all arms of govern­ment to end this obnoxious practice.


All stakeholders including local authorities, security agencies and civil society groups must join forces to promote child protection and safety. Children are vulnerable and should not be sacrificed on the altar of heinous socio-cultural and religious practices. Nigeria cur­rently bears the shame of a seeming penchant for child-related sexual atrocities, hence the urgency to the end these violations, should be prioritized in the change agenda of the current administration.
Unless this is done, the national pursuit for sustainable development will continue to elude the nation and its circumscribed citizens.

Any hope for the Nigerian child?

"There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children."
— Nelson Mandela, Former President of South Africa

The life of the Nigerian child still remains the worst reflection of Nigeria's dismal peculiarities.

The anguish and suffering of many children across the country are horrifying.

More than else, the very despicable circumstances that have pushed these young ones to the precipice reflect the nation’s spiralling failings.

The challenges facing them are, to say the least, most haunting and daunting.

Right from the nation’s capital of Abuja to the commercial hub in Lagos and oil nave of Port Harcourt the gaunt faces of hungry and beggarly looking children confront one with endless queries about Nigeria’s commitment to its children. The situation is worse in Kano, Kaduna, Katsina and other Northern states, due to poor access to modern education, health and social amenities.

Who will rescue the Nigerian child? This question has bedevilled the nation, for many years, despite decades of national and international interventions to secure the lives of these young ones.
Most people blame it on poor governance, corruption, extreme religious and cultural practices that promote gross violations of rights of children and women too.

Remember the case of Ese Oruru. The 14 year-old lad was cruelly frittered away from her secure home in
Bayelsa State to Kano State and converted to Islam by Yunusa Dahiru, who defiled and impregnated her.

Though justice has been meted to her abductor, Ese’s life remains severely affected by the traumatic experience, sexual abuse, early pregnancy and unplanned motherhood.

Just like the kidnap of Chibok girls, Ese will remain a sore point in the conscience of the nation, as many children particularly girls continue to fall victims of terrorism, rape, kidnap and death, according to police and media reports.

Without doubt Ese represents the huge percentage of Nigerian kids, whose lives chronicle the bestiality of the nation's failed political, economic and social system.

It is simply difficult to forget Ese. She is the girl next door.
She is the child rummaging through dirty dump site for bread.
She is the child criss-crossing major roads across cities and towns selling items to augment the family income,
She is also the child-bride forced into a mix-matched marriage of oddities.
She is also among the tribe of beggars and almajiris dotting street corners and markets, due to obnoxious religious and economic reasons.
The list is endless.

Her story still rings an uncanny bell about this country and its absurdities of poor governance, economic failures, religious extremism and socio-cultural inequities.

Ese is the face of the Nigerian child marked by the savagery of the nation’s failed system and obnoxious cultural practices that tend to subjugate women and children.
She represents the millions of out-of-school girls and boys, who provide fodder for Boko Haram terrorists and other criminal bandits.

Sadly this mirrors the lives of countless numbers of children and young adults across the country.

Apart from a few privileged ones, most children across the length and breadth of the land live in despicable circumstances that defy reason and logic.

Many are trapped in sex slavery and child marriages; others are living on the precipice of poverty, illiteracy and economic exploitation.

Nigerian kids are among the most vilified children globally according to reports from United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) and sister agencies.

It is no longer news that Nigeria has over 10 million
out-of-school children accounting for one of the highest rates globally.

Sadly these dismal demographics have worsened by the emergence of Boko Haram, Fulani herdsmen, religious violence and political upheavals.

UNICEF confirmed this in its 2017 report saying
‘the humanitarian crisis in Nigeria has significantly increased in scale, due to the on-going conflict in the North-East. In the three most directly affected states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, 8.5 million people require humanitarian assistance, including 1.68 million internally displaced persons, more than half of whom are children.’

In line with the 2017 Humanitarian Response Plan, UNICEF said its focus remains on these three states, where 93 per cent of the internally displaced reside. The nutrition situation is of great concern, with some areas experiencing rates of Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) (10–20 per cent) that far exceed emergency thresholds.’

The apex children agency lamented that social services are still severely disrupted, with 40 per cent of health facilities and 1,200 schools damaged or destroyed due to the conflict. Similarly, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) has become a growing concern, with an estimated 3.9 million people needing assistance.

‘Presently, three million children have lost access to learning; more than 2.7 million conflict-affected children need psychosocial support; 20,000 children are unaccompanied and separated and 8,000 children are associated with armed forces and groups,’ it revealed.

UNICEF warned that failure to reintegrate and separation from families is increasing children’s risk of abuse and exploitation.
In 2017, UNICEF said it needed ‘US$ 146.9 million to reach more than four million people, including 2.1 million children due to 69 per cent funding gap, especially for children and their families. It noted that donor support is critical to continue scaling up the response in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states.’

On several occasions wife of the President, Mrs. Aisha Buhari has tasked political religious and traditional leaders to promote the rights of children through investments in health and educational programmes, especially for the girl-child.

Speaking during a side event at the 50th Session of United Nations Commission on Population and Development, in New York, United States (US), Buhari called for more investments in out-of-school teenage girls, as ‘a substantial number of these girls have either not completed their education or have never attended school, and that this portends unpleasant consequences for humanity.’

The event had as theme: ‘Investing in out of school teenage girls: a priority for achieving demographic dividends, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Africa.’

She made a similar call in her message to mark this year’s International Women’s Day urging governments at all levels to rise to the global challenge of ensuring gender equality and empowerment of women and girls.

She also challenged relevant organizations and stakeholders to rise to the global challenge of ensuring the achievement of the goals in line with the objective of SDPs.

Lamenting over the intractable violations of women and children, she charged women to remain courageous despite the social and economic challenges in several communities in Nigeria and other developing nations.
“As you may be aware, records have shown that women are the most vulnerable and poorest group globally.

Said she: “In Nigeria, this gap exists as a result of socio-economic and other factors. Despite these challenges that women face in their journey, however, they must not be deterred as they are the fountain of wisdom and endurance.’

This year’s theme, “Be Bold for Change”, was enunciated towards taking effective action to support women rights, accelerating gender equality and improving access to economic opportunities, especially to girls.
Obviously this will have a direct impact on the lives of children in most affected countries across the world.

Research has shown that there is a strong correlation between women and children. Hence children fare better in societies, where women’s rights and empowerment are promoted.

The need to tackle the underlying social and cultural factors that compromise and threaten the lives of children in the country must be tackled with all the seriousness it deserves, as part of a comprehensive approach to end all forms of discriminations against children.

Much ado about grazing rights

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. All tyranny needs to gain a 

 is for people of good conscience to remain silent.

– Edmund Burke

Nigeria is often denigrated as a land of oddities. This is rightly so, due to its numerous social, ethnic and religious conflagrations. Few days back, Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) took on the Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom over grazing bill.

The State House of Assembly recently passed the bill entitled, “Open grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law,” which criminalizes open Grazing and rearing of livestock in the state. Ortom has severally said that such legislation would promote the economy and protect lives and property of people, especially in Agatu and several communities occupied by suspected Fulani cattlemen.

He also vowed to ensure proper implementation of the bill, when signed into law, while urging security agencies and stakeholders to co-operate with the government and people of the state. However, in a swift reaction, the group, largely comprising Fulani herders, asked the governor not to sign the law, citing security reasons and ethnic hostilities. North Central Chairman of MACBAN, Alhaji Danladi Chiroma, accused the state government of plans to use the bill to sack all Fulani herders including those indigenous to the state.

His words: ‘Now the House of Assembly is telling them to leave the state, when the Nigerian constitution gives every individual the right to live and practise his occupation in any part of this country.’

He further argued that the bill when signed into law will escalate tension between herdsmen and their Tiv brothers, resident in Makurdi and neighbouring states. Recall that the group and their allies made similar threats last year when Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, signed a similar law tagged: “A Bill for A Law to Regulate and Control Cattle and Other Ruminants Grazing in Ekiti State and Other Matters Connected Therewith, 2016.”

Of course Fayose ignored their threats, and signed the law warning that: ‘anyone caught grazing with arms or any weapon in Ekiti would now be charged with terrorism and be made to face the law according to certain sections of it.’

The Fulani herdsmen have allegedly continued to cause mayhem and wreck havoc in several communities and farms across the country, due to the uncanny peculiarities of the Nigerian nation, where justice is stood on its head, as every issue is suffused with religious, ethnic and geo-political hues.

The stakes are very high, but the issues are equally very glaring. Evidently, desert encroachment, drought, water scarcity, insurgency and declining vegetation in parts of Northern Nigeria, have among other factors, forced the indigenous people of the region including Fulani pastoralists to migrate to the South in search of greener pastures, often resulting in violent clashes between the herders and host communities.

In verity, there is absolutely no justification for the wanton killings of innocent Nigerians due to forage.

Sadly, the Federal Government as presently constituted, under President Muhammadu Buhari, has failed to disarm these herdsmen, which many have advocated as critical to ending this human butchery.

This failure is obviously a recipe for escalating ethno-religious tensions and anarchy across the society.

Many have argued that the inability to objectively and equitably address this armed conflict could inevitably trigger a social inferno comparable to the ‘Arab Spring’ that engulfed some Middle East countries including Tunisia, Egypt and Syria, which has since been embroiled in a six-year civil war.

It is, therefore, gratuitous that some state governments have taken bold steps to stem the disastrous activities of nomadic herders in their states. In hailing these legislations, many Nigerians expect that most states, particularly Enugu, Anambra, Delta, Ebonyi, Abia as well as other states in the South and Middle Belt regions will take similar measures.

The brazen and wanton killings associated with herdsmen in Nigeria, as well as Central African Republic and other neighbouring countries have continued to provoke national, regional and global concerns.

Apart from the criminal activities associated with these armed herders, experts, especially agriculturalists and environmentalists have severally warned about the negative impact of uncontrolled and open grazing.

Such adverse consequences include depletion of land and aquatic resources as well as pollution, crop failure and food deficiency.

Others are deforestation, desertification, erosion and mudslides. It is, therefore, not surprising that Governor Ortom, whose state remains the epicentre of these conflicts has thrown his weight behind abolition of open grazing. According to him, the bill represents the yearnings and aspirations of Benue people who for several years have borne the brunt of violent attacks by nomadic cattle rearers.

His words: ‘What you see in that bill is a decision not just of the governor, or the speaker or members of the Benue State House of Assembly, but the decision of Benue State because the bill was subjected to public hearing and the people were unanimous.’

While southerners are seeking measures to checkmate the menace of rampaging herdsmen, many core northerners are rooting for more grazing rights and routes for cattle, in addition to intensifying efforts to curtail rustling. Thousands of unarmed citizens have died and hectares of farmlands destroyed, while several communities were razed down in most barbaric manners, due to clashes between cattle rearers and farmers.

The Constitution guarantees freedom of movement to all citizens, but this does not in any way justify the unprovoked and unwarranted attacks of hundreds of villages and towns at night and unholy hours, hardly sparing women, children and even worship centres.

The lackadaisical attitude by Federal Government and security forces over this contentious issue has continued to generate public indignation, as many critics accuse the administration of insensitivity and partisanship, despite the human toll occasioned by these conflicts. It is obviously a festering sore as well as a litmus test for this administration and the ruling party.

Reports are rife that many farming communities live in fear, due to sporadic attacks by herdsmen, especially at nights.

This anomaly is not only evil but atrocious. Many Nigerians have said so. Farmers cannot continue to be sacrificed at the altar of cow business.

This is an indefensible infraction that must be addressed and urgently too to avoid a conflagration that may undermine the Nigerian union. Unfortunately, the security agencies have often been accused of supporting the cattle rearers. When it comes to cattle rustling security operatives are said to be up and doing.