Father, ex-husband, two others on their way to jail as Emir of Kano, police boss act tough on violence against women

On Tuesday, 28 March, the Emir of Kano, Muham­mad Sanusi 11, graced his invitation by the Women’s Right Advancement and Pro­tection Alternative in collabo­ration with Centre for Gender Studies, (CGS), Bayero Univer­sity Kano (BUK). The one-day interactive session held at one of Nigeria’s prestigious university, BUK. There at the even, Sarkin kano reiterated his desire for the exhibition of justice, fairness, re­spect and mutual understanding among couples, stating that it is the only way out of the mount­ing problems bedeviling the in­stitution of marriage in the so­ciety. Sanusi II, further decried persistent violence against wom­en and children, and called on husbands to treat their female partners with respect and dig­nity.

In that session, centered on the pillars of Kano Social Re­form Project, the outspoken monarch further lamented the growing violence and discrim­ination against women and children in the society, noting that, “for any society yearning for growth and development, it must find a way of treating women and children fairly and just,” pointing out that, “Islam abhors any form of discrimina­tion, maltreatment and injustice against humanity.” The Royal Fa­ther advocated for the promul­gation of laws that would enforce strict compliance with the doc­trine of Islamic Shari’a so that such violence meted out against women and children particular­ly, will stop.”

According to him, “a situa­tion where an adult married a girl and gruesomely maltreat­ing her is untenable, even as it is unIslamic and must be con­demned by all men of goodwill. We are not saying that a person has no right to marry a minor or teenager up his daughter, but, what we are saying is that any husbands must treat his wife(s) with respect and dignity in ac­cordance with the religious in­junctions.” Moreso, according to a Communique read by Dr. Mu­hammad Babangida Muham­mad, participants at the event equally decried the consequenc­es of violence against women in marriage.

The vintage Sarkin Kano must have spoken as a ‘Prophet,’ as a weel later, father and ex-hus­band of a woman identified as Kaltume Ibrahim, including two other accomplices, were arrested by the police for forcefully muti­lating her genetical organ for un­knwon reasons.

The state Commssioner of Po­lice, Mr. Rabiu Yusuf told jour­nalists last Tuesday that the fa­ther of the victim, Ibrahim Maikaji of Sabuwar Kaura Vil­lage, Doguwa Local Govern­ment Area Kano, and her ex-husband, Aminu Ali, gave out Kaltume to local barbers for genital mutilation. According to him, Ibrahim Maikaji con­spired with Aminu ALI, “and gave out his biological daughter to two local barbers, identified as Shu’aibu Wanzam, Muham­madu Garba for forceful gene­tal mutilation.

According to him, “they force­fully held her and used sharp ob­ject to mutilate her private part, thereby causing grievous injury against her. This operation was cruelly carried out thereby, caus­ing grievous injury to the genital organ of the victim, rendering it dysfunctional over the years. All the suspects have been arrested. They are currently undergoing interrogation for the offence of criminal conspiracy and caus­ing grievous hurt and will soon be arraigned in Court of Law for prosecution.”

The police boss further de­cried the attitude of some par­ents and guardians over abuse of their responsibilities. He also condemned lack of care and at­tention to children, “sending them on unnecessary errand, street hawking, hard labour, and other physical and mental forms of maltreatment against children.”

Mr. Rabiu Yusuf, however, stated that, “the Kano state Po­lice Command has risen to these challenges; and will not spare any person found to be violating the rights of children under any guise. It is in this light that the Kano State Police Command is reiterating its firm stands against all forms of criminal activities, including violence against chil­dren by parents and guardians or any person. The public is, there­fore, urged to carry out their ac­tivities within the ambits of the law or face the consequence of any act that violates the law”. -The Authority