By WILLIAM JIMOH

LAGOS — TRADE Union Congress, TUC, Women Commission and the International Federation of Women Lawyers, FIDA, have appealed to the Lagos State House of Assembly, to immediately pass into law, the Domestic Violence against Women Bill.

TUC’s women commission and FIDA weekend said this would check frequent abuses women were exposed to both at home and in their places of work.

Speaking at a rally as part of the programmes marking the commission’s day, in Lagos, the Chairperson, TUC Women Commission, Mrs. Rose Orji Kalu, said the passage of the bill had become crucial to survival of women and the girl child.

Women from all sectors of the economy,  who participated at the rally held at the Lagos State House, displayed several placards with inscriptions such as “we shall shine”, “Gender gaining momentum,” “Say no to violence against women and children,”  “Eliminate and prevent all forms of violence against women and the girl child,” among others.

According to Kalu: “The violence against women and the girl child in this country is so much that you even see a husband beating his own wife to death. It has happened times without number and that is why we at TUC in collaboration with FIDA who are also in the fore-front fighting the violence against women are saying that it is high time the law is passed not only here in Lagos but across the country.”

She noted that “because of the importance of this law, United Nations, UN, on March 8, which is the international women day discoursed ways to get the law adopted across the globe with the theme “Violence Against Women and Girl Child in the Working Place” while the International Labour Organization, ILO, picked “Gender Gaining Momentum” and that is why we are pleading that the law be passed in Nigeria.”

“Why we are suffering all these violence, we are saying, give us that voice, and let us be heard, stop intimidating us because we are the wife, we are the mother and also we are career women. And that is why you need to help us pass this law and even take it to Abuja because it is burning in our hearts and we are feeling the pain.”

On her part, the Lagos State FIDA Chairperson, Mrs. Funmi Oluyode, represented by Lagos State immediate past Public Relation Officer of FIDA, Nkechi Chukweae, said  “FIDA believes there is no good reason for being cruel to any woman, and girl child even if she is rude.

We don’t accept any justification whatever she has done and no matter the reason, there are other ways of cutting her down, if you feel she is becoming rude to you as husband, go to her family, report her to her friends, talk to her or even leave the house for a while she will surly look for you.”