Governor calls for eradication of female genital mutilation

dimeji akinloye

November 10, 2015 11:03 PM

The governor commended former President Goodluck Jonathan for signing the Act prohibiting female genital mutilation in Nigeria.

Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola

Gov. Rauf Aregbesola of Osun has called on government at all levels to work towards total eradication of female genital mutilation in the country.

Aregbesola made the call at a Forum on Female Genital Mutilation organised by United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA), in collaboration with Shericare Foundation in Osogbo on Tuesday.

The governor commended former President Goodluck Jonathan for signing the Act prohibiting female genital mutilation in Nigeria.

According to Aregbesola, female genital mutilation is a bad practice borne out of primitive idea to continually dominate females in the society which must be stopped by all Nigerians.

"Everybody must work hard to ensure that the practice is done away with. Besides the damage it has done to women, it has created health challenges like acute urinary retention, delivery complications, among others.

"We have not established any scientific advantage let alone any religion supporting the practise. It is just an inhuman design to suppress the other sex."

Sherifat, wife of the governor and President of Shericare Foundation, described female genital mutilation as primitive.

She said that if the practice continued, 2, 718, 000 girls born between 2010 and 2015 would be at risk of experiencing female genital mutilation by 2030.

Country Representative of UNFPA, Ms Ratidzai Ndhlovu, charged Osun Government to work and ensure the eradication of the practice.

She stressed that‎ Osun had the highest prevalence rate of 7.6 per cent, followed by Oyo state with 7.2per cent.

The UNFPA boss added that it was important for the wives of governors in the country and other stakeholders to ensure strict compliance with the existing law on female genital mutilation.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that ‎wife of Oyo State Governor, Florence Ajimobi, wife of Governor of Ekiti State, Feyi Fayose, representatives of wives of the Governors of Lagos, Imo and Ebonyi, were among dignitaries at the event.

dimeji akinloye