WFD To Ensure Implementation of the Violence Against Person Prohibition Law in Plateau
Written by Nanji Nandang on February 18, 2022
The Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) has outlined the challenges that threaten the implementation structures of the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act in 12 states of Nigeria in a policy document.
WFD disclosed this during the presentation of the policy brief document developed by WFD from National research on the “Impact of the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act and related Laws in Nigeria, to the wife of the Plateau State Governor.
The WFD Expert in Plateau State, Mary Izam said, the aim of presenting the policy brief document is to ensure that the VAPP Act is assented and gazetted for its full implementation in Plateau state.
Izam said some of the threatening challenges that were discovered during the research include lack of synergy, intimidation, slow judicial process, to the inadequacy of interventions specific to various needs and categories of victims.
“Despite the existence of these laws, the implementation process is weak,” she said.
While presenting an award to the Plateau first lady on behalf of WFD, for her outstanding work in the fight against gender-based violence in the state, Izam expressed optimism that the presentation of the document will advance the effective implementation in Plateau state.
In the same vein, the National Project Officer of WFD, Edidiong Idang said
the national research provided contextual information on the impact and challenges of the VAPP law and other gender laws peculiar to the states where the laws have been domesticated which included FCT, Plateau, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Edo State, Enugu, Abia, Anambra, Osun, Lagos, Bauchi, and Kaduna states.
The Plateau state first lady, Regina Lalong who was represented by the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Rebecca Sambo, in response said that Plateau people deserve protection from any act of gender-based violence in the state.
“We will make sure that we work in synergy with other stakeholders so that the bill currently before the Plateau state House of Assembly which seeks to prohibit violence against persons becomes a law in the state. Once the law is in place, I can assure you that its implementation will not be a big deal in Plateau state”
The meeting which was hosted by the state Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development was joined virtually by other stakeholders outside the state.
