Kaduna govt. inaugurates Sexual Assault Referral Centre in Kafanchan
The Kaduna state government has inaugurated a Sexual Assault Referral Centre, the first of its kind, in southern part of the state.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony held at Sir Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa Memorial Hospital, Kafanchan, the Solicitor-General and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice Kaduna State, Mr Chris Umar, lamented on increasing rate of incidences of sexual violence such as rape and assault have in the communities, with a high number of children largely being the victims.
He observed that, these actions bear legal consequences but are either unreported or under reported and, therefore, are not prosecuted.
The Solicitor-General added that was estimated that one out of every three females and one out of every five males have been sexually abused at one stage of their lives.
“And it is rather unfortunate that despite these the society has failed to give support to victims. They are rather subjected to discrimination, blame and fear.”
He commended the government of Kaduna State for making one of its priority list of the provision of Sexual Assault Referral Centres across the State to provide immediate support to victims.
In a goodwill message, the Chairman of the Kaduna Justice Sector Coordination Group, Justice Darius Khobo, admonished the people of the state to give their support to the centre.
He said this was necessary because most of the victims are their children and the perpetrators of the acts are close relations.
He added that it is imperative to nip the menace in the bud while the victims are provided with care, treatment and assisted to generate evidence for prosecution of the perpetrators.
The Chairman of the Interim Management Committee (IMC) Jaba local government, Mrs Hadiza Muazu, lauded the effort of the government and urged the people to avail themselves with the centre’s services.
The centre’s Manager, Mrs Grace Yohana, appealed to victims to report cases and allow justice to take its course.
She also urged victims not to hesitate in coming forward to be given treatment and counselling, which would help them to recover.