Wife of Niger State Governor, Dr Amina Abubarkar Sani Bello, has advocated life imprisonment for those convicted of rape.
She also promised to examine problems causing delay in the constitution of Boards for the state Ministry of Health.
Governor Bellos’ wife made the suggestion when she was addressing Global Promoters for Community Initiative (GPCI) team and top officials of the state Ministry of Justice on a visit to her office in Minna.
She also promised that the state would benefit maximally from donor agencies and developmental partners willing to support the state health sector.
Amina told the GPCI team led by the state coordinator, Primary Health Care Under One Roof (PHCUOR), Mr. Kalejaiye Olasunkanmi, that as a medical doctor, she wanted the best for the state.
While promising to intervene and ensure that the state enjoys support from donor agencies, Amina said that she would find out why the governor was yet to inaugurate Board for Niger State Primary Health Care Development Agency (NSPHCDA) and related parastatals.
“I am aware some boards were inaugurated recently. The non-existence of the board is making the state not to benefit from donor agencies and development partners in the health sector. I may not readily explain but I will find out why because we are the ones losing afterall”, she said.
In a related development, the governor’s wife told the team from the state Ministry of Justice that rapists deserved more punishment, stressing that a situation whereby rapists suffer minor punishment will only encourage more people to engage in rape because of the minor punishment.
She said, “Almost on weekly basis I receive reports of one or two rape cases most of them involving minors; the punishment for offenders is not stringent to deter them from committing the crime.
“If life sentence is the maximum punishment for rapists those involved will think twice before committing the offence.”
She therefore called for stiffer penalties for rapists.
Dr. Bello also took exceptions to the N10, 000 fine and two months jail term recently handed down to a serial homosexual who ‘raped a 12-year-old boy to death,’ insisting, ‘‘The punishment was not commensurate with the offence committed’’.
Also the state Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Nasara Dan-mallam, had told the governor’s wife that the state Judicial Service Commission had set up a high powered committee to investigate the Magistrates that handled the rape and homosexual cases and the committee would soon submit its report.
