From Beauty John, Lafia
The Nasarawa state government, concerned by the outrageous number of rape cases recorded in 2020, across the 13 local government areas in the state, said structures have been put in place to ensure rapists are adequately prosecuted to serve as deterrent to others.
The state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Dr Abdulkarim Kana reiterated this during an interview with The AUTHORITY in Lafia.
Dr Kana, who decried the alarming number of rape cases currently in the state courts, attributed it to collapse in the social values of the society.
“There are certain crimes that are as a result of a collapse in the social values of our people, and to address them will also require some form of value change in the way we think, the way we act, the way we behave and interact with one another in the society,” he said.
Dr Kana, who asserted that the state government is doing its best to see to the protection of women and children, through domestication of the Child Rights Law and Violence Against Persons (VAP) Law, which subscribes life imprisonment for perpetuators of rape, however, stated that law has limitations.
The Attorney General warned traditional rulers and religious leaders whom are fond of interfering with investigations regarding rape or criminal proceedings desist from it.
“A practical instance is where witnesses are either being intimidated, or the witnesses are being admonished by traditional arm or religious leaders to forgive and forget,” Kana said.
The commissioner noted that religious leaders have a major role in curtailing these cases, as he advised that they preach less of poverty and prosperity and preach more on values.
On the issue of separation of power between the arms and tiers of government, the commissioner said Governor Abdullahi A Sule respects and abides by the provision for the separation of power, for effective governance.
According to him, Governor Sule does not interfere with the running of the local government councils, adding that the 13 councils enjoy full autonomy in terms of managing their own resources and affairs.
“As for the arms of government which are the Executive, Legislative the Judiciary, the relationship has become even smoother after The Summit Of Arms which took place on 30th of September and 1st of October 2020,” Dr Kana said.
