The Commissioner of Police, Gombe State command, Ishola Babaita, has advised parents to always speak up against rape to protect children and ensure reduction in cases of rape in the state.
Babaita made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Gombe.
He described rape as a serious offence that needed not to be covered, but exposed to the police for quick action to ensure protection of children from perpetrators of the act in the state.
The police boss said the Command had abhorred any form of violence against women and children in the state.
“I advise parents to always speak up whenever such cases occur because you are not doing the society, women and children any good by your silence.
“Perpetrators of rape are not fit to live among the people because of the kind of threats they expose women and girls to.
“That is why we are appealing to everyone to help with the right information to arrest culprits and send them to court.
“The psychological and emotional torture from rape or any form of sexual violence on victims increases whenever they see perpetrators of such crimes walking freely,” he said.
According to Babaita, there is no excuse for anyone to engage in any form of sexual-based violence against women and children because of the physical or psychological effects that the victims are made to go through.
He said his command was strengthening efforts at addressing the cases of rape in the state, adding, “we move in swiftly whenever cases of rape are reported to the police.”
He said 104 suspects had been apprehended from the 93 rape cases reported to the command in 2021 and 88 cases were charged to court, while five cases were still under investigation.
Babaita said the command was engaging relevant stakeholders in efforts to ensure reduction in cases of rape in the state.
“We have been carrying out advocacy and partnering with critical stakeholders toward eliminating cases of rape in our command.
“We are doing this by involving stakeholders from religious, community leaders, women groups, among others as a way of sustaining the campaign against rape,” he said. (NAN)
