Minister urges RTEAN to curb GBV in motor parks  

Minister of Women Affairs, Pauline Tallen, has raised concerns over the increasing cases of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in motor parks across the country, urging commercial transport workers to curb the menace.

Describing GBV as human rights as well as a life-threatening issue, she lamented that members of the transport unions usually turn blind eyes to the menace.

The minister stated this, yesterday, at the 10th national delegates conference of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) in Abuja.

At the conference, President of RTEAN, Musa Maitakobi, and 46 other National Executive Council members of the association were unanimously re-elected for another tenure of five years.

Noting that the association holds an important place in national development, especially to protecting passengers from violence, she called on RTEAN to constantly enlighten their members on issues bordering on GBV often witnessed in motor parks.

Tallen said: “When I sometimes visit parks in company of family, I still see young girls and boys hawking when they should be in school.”

Yet, your members turn blind eyes to such scenarios. In some cases, these children become victims of exploitation and abuse. Due to their vulnerability, they are afraid to report, and so the cycle of abuse continues.

“Today, in Nigeria, GBV is seen as a serious offence, and government at all levels have declared zero tolerance to it, due to the efforts of the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs under my stewardship. It is, therefore, no longer business-as-usual, when caught. Ignorance is not an excuse. Where your rights end is where the next person’s rights begin.”

While commending President Muhammadu Buhari and state governors, who have classified GBV as a national plague and declared emergency on GBV, she disclosed that significant milestones had been recorded in addressing GBV in the country.

According to her, from 23 states that domesticated the Child Rights Act in 2019, today, we have 34 states and for the Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act (2015), from 13 states in 2019 and 35 today.

“Beyond just rejoicing that these acts are in place, my question to this great gathering is, how familiar are you with the contents of these documents?

“I enjoin the leadership of this association to begin to mount simple graphic messages around the parks to educate the members and passengers alike on what constitutes GBV,” she added.

Maitakobi, while thanking the members for electing him for another term, he stressed the need for the incoming government to invest more in the transport sector to provide jobs for unemployed youths.