Miss Faith Philip, former Miss Gbagyi in Bwari, FCT, on Thursday urged Federal Government to introduce stiff penalties for perpetrators of Gender-Based Violence (GBV).
Philip, a 2015/2016 Gbagyi beauty queen, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.
The advice was on sideline of activities to mark the UN International Day for Elimination of Violence Against Women, celebrated globally on Nov. 25, every year.
She said the call had become imperative because GBV was fast becoming rampant in Nigeria and the world at large.
The queen, who noted that women were subjected to rape and other forms of domestic violence, noted that ending violence against women was an important issue that should be dealt with vigorously.
She added that “the reason why government should focus on women is because they are highly vulnerable and often affected in cases of GBV.
“Government has to intervene and come up with stringent laws to punish culprits of violence against women to deter others who might want to do same.”
She, however, stressed the need for increased enlightenment against all forms of GBV.
The celebration of UN International Day for Elimination of Violence Against Women was in remembrance of the assassination of the three Mirabel sisters who were political activists in the Dominican Republic by the then Dominican dictator, Rafael Trujillo in 1960. (NAN)