Special to USAfrica magazine (Houston) and USAfricaonline.com, first African-owned, U.S-based newspaper published on the Internet.
Nigeria’s Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs. Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, has elevated as a priority the government’s challenge to marrying of under-age girls/minors and orphans in parts of the country.
She has entered a plea for a court injunction to stop the Speaker of the Niger State House of Assembly, Abdulmalik Sarkindaji, from marrying off 100 orphaned girls. She has sent a petition to the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun on the same issue.
The Speaker recently announced this as a “constituency project”, set to take place in about 10 days, on May 24, 2024. Sarkindaji has said that his decision to sponsor the marriage event is “aimed at alleviating the suffering of the impoverished.”
Kennedy-Ohanenye said in Abuja: “I want to let the Honourable Speaker of the House in Niger State know that this is unacceptable by the Federal Minister Of Women Affairs and by the government unacceptable.Because there is something called the Child’s Rights Act and I said it from the onset, that is no more business as usual. “These children must be considered, their future must be considered, the future of the children to come out of their marriage must be considered.”
She added that “I have gone to court. I have written him a letter and written a petition to the IG of the police. And I have filed for an injunction to stop him from whatever he is planning to do on the 24th until a thorough investigation is carried out on those girls, find out whether they gave their consent, their ages, find out the people marrying them. As the Speaker did not think about empowering these women or sending them to school or giving them some kind of training (and) support financially. The ministry has decided to take it up and we are going to educate the children. Those that do not want to go to school, we will train them in skill, empower them with sustainable empowerment machines to enable that child build his or her life and make up her mind who and when to get married. If for any reason the Speaker tries to do contrary to what I have just mentioned there will be a serious legal battle between him and the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs.”
