Ezekwesili, Odumakin Lead Agitation Against Child Marriage

Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, former Minister of Education; Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, Executive Director, Women Arise for Change Initiative; Jimi Agbaje and others have joined several other women to campaign against child marriage and called on the Senate to urgently expunge that obnoxious section from the constitution.

At stakeholders’ meeting on Child Marriage organized by Women Arise for Change Initiative at the Airport Hotel, Ikeja in Lagos, Southwest Nigeria, they observed that section 29 (4) (b) had always been part of the 1999 Constitution as there was no proposed bill legitimizing child marriage.

A communiqué issued at the end of the meeting and read by Ezekwesili observed that the Senate Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution rightly recommended that section 29 (4) (b) of the constitution be deleted.

“The introduction of religion as a tool of confusing Senator Ahmed Yerima which led to a second vote that ultimately defeated the popular votes that supported the deletion of the obnoxious provision of the particular section is very worrisome and a cause for serious public concern, communiqué stated.

Reading the communiqué, Ezekwesili said the stakeholders demand the deletion of Section 29 (4) (b) of the 1999 Constitution as originally proposed by the Senate Committee on Constitutional Review.

She stated that women organizations and all supportive civil society organizations, community-based organizations and others would form a broad coalition to continually monitor the National Assembly and the State House of Assembly to ensure the deletion of the obnoxious section to ensure protection and the rights of the girl-child and women in general.

“Girls and women issue which has come to the centre of public agitation should be mainstreamed into all aspects of public policies. We adopt the letter delivered to the leadership of the Senate by Gender and Coalition Reform Network.

“All known violators of Child Rights Act in all the states of the federation must be prosecuted to serve as deterrence to others. State House of Assemblies that are yet to domesticate the Child Rights Act should immediately do so,” she added.

Ezekwesili stated that the Violence Against Persons Bill pending before the National Assembly and the State Houses of Assembly and the Gender Equality Opportunity Bill before the lawmakers should be passed without further delay.

She further said Nigeria should immediately domesticate and fulfill her obligations with regard to international treaties and regional conventions on women without further delay.

—Kazeem Ugbodaga