Penalising rapists

•It’s time to impose stiffer penalty, not ultimate punishment, on sex offenders

Molestation of boys and girls sexually is the new epidemic in town. Daily, there are reports that children as young as six months are defiled by depraved adults who are quick to attribute it to the devil when apprehended. Teenagers in secondary and tertiary institutions are worse hit by teachers and lecturers who take advantage of them. This is the ugliest face of sexual abuse that the state has responsibility to curb immediately.

Rape of full grown adults has also increased. Cousins, uncles, family friends are more often than not wont to take advantage of close relations by forcing themselves on the victims. In some cases, it is even by siblings and fathers who then threaten the victims with dire consequences should they speak out.  Yet, the consequences are grave, lasting almost the lifetime if appropriate steps for psychological therapy are not taken. Psychologists have warned that Post- traumatic Stress tends to rail victims throughout life, thus affecting their marital life and possibly distorting their personalities.

The Senate has taken the lead in calling for stringent penalties for the offence. Last week, Senator Rose Oko from Cross River State took the lead in calling attention to the steep rise in the cases and calling on the upper legislative house to take another look at the extant laws. All other senators who spoke on the matter, male and female, said it would amount to dereliction of duty if another look was not taken at the laws to deter the criminals.

We do not agree with those who have argued that paedophilia is a disease and the paedophiles should rather be pitied and treated. That line of reasoning can only encourage the clan of those who see defilement of minors, including in some cases boys, as a ritual that could bring them wealth or power. Not too long ago, some perverts in Southern Africa argued that raping virgins was a cure for the dreaded Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS).

Indeed, it is the duty of the state to protect all citizens from all manner of crimes, more so the minors and women who constitute the most vulnerable sectors of the society. We expect the Senate to urgently organise a public hearing at which non-governmental organisations, federal and state ministries of justice, women groups, international organisations and the Nigerian Bar Association will be invited to take a look at the laws and find means of plugging loopholes that have made it difficult to secure conviction for the perverts.

As the senators resolved, a register of sexual offenders should be opened and diligent prosecution ensured. However, we are convinced that the most important step to take is awareness in our schools by the religious bodies. The girl-child in particular must be protected by receiving education on what is rape and how it is perpetrated in our society. She should be informed too of what to do in case she is overpowered by predators pretending to be friends. As a first step, the Nigerian Governors Forum has a duty to exert pressure on the 10 states that have refused to domesticate the Child Rights Act with a view to ensuring protection for minors who are exposed to abuse daily.

We, however, do not support the imposition of the death penalty that has become unfashionable in most parts of the world. Many countries have struck it off their statute books given its ineffectiveness and finality. Man is not perfect and, as such, no human institution is. In many cases in the past, even in the most advanced countries, it had been discovered many years after some convicts had been executed that they were indeed innocent.

But we support stiffer penalty as may be decided after public hearing by both chambers of the National Assembly. Nigeria is not a habitat for sexual perverts.