The Executive Secretary of DSVA, Mrs Titilola Vivour-Adeniyi, made the call on Monday at Ajeromi Ifelodun Local Government Area, during the ‘Eko Men Walk Against Sexual And Gender-Based Violence’, with the theme: “SGBV, Not In My Lagos! SGBV, Not On My Watch!”.
Vivour-Adeniyi said that collaborative efforts would ensure that the issues of SGBV were tackled.
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She said that the walk was organised to ensure that the menfolk were engaged to speak to their fellow men, as well as reach out to the women about the menace of SGBV.
According to her, the walk is part of the activities to commemorate the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Awareness Month, which is held every September.
“In our bid to ensure that we are engaging with the male folk, we thought it was expedient to organise this walk; which is being led by men; to speak to their fellow men; to speak to women about these critical issues.
“We are in Ajeromi Ifelodun purposely because of recent, we started to see some very traumatic stories, incidents of especially child abuse, emerging from this LGA and LCDA.
“Two weeks ago, we heard of a man who was using hot iron on the son’s buttocks and we have another one of a female child, who was beaten for three years and the bruises are still all over her body.
“Those two children had to be rescued and they are currently placed in a home provided by the Ministry of Youth and Social Development, and the suspects have been arraigned.
“So, we thought that instead of the normal routine of responding, we should be proactive.
“We should come in, engage the community, and let them know of the different forms of abuses.
“We want to let them know that these abuses attract jail terms, and ignorance of the law is definitely not an excuse.
“Most importantly, let them know about the support services that exist, that they can take advantage of,” she said”.
The executive secretary said that the government had zero tolerance for all forms of SGBV, hence, the need for the sensitisation walk.
She said that the agency had seen a steady increase in the formal and informal reporting of SGBV cases, which was a testament to the awareness and faith the people had in the system.
Vivour-Adeniyi said that issues of SGBV thrive in a culture of silence, hence, urging residents to break the culture of silence, so as to curb the menace.
“Going forward, the agency wants to reduce the menace to the barest minimum, we want to kick out domestic and sexual violence from Lagos.
“That is why we chose the theme for this year’s event; we are emphasising the collective role that everyone has to play to get this out of the society,” she said.
The Chairman of Ajeromi Ifelodun Local Government, Mr Fatai Ayoola, thanked the Lagos State Government for bringing the initiative to the fore in the area.
Ayoola, who was represented by his Deputy, Mr Lucky Uduikhue, said that the information would be cascaded to the rest of the community, to ensure violence-free homes.
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