Skip to main content

Gang-rape Threat? Governor's Son Must Face Trial



The prosecution of Governor Nasir El-Rufai's son Bello,  has been set in motion by the women's group over alleged "gang-rape threat". 

 

The Nation newspaper reported that the women organisations in a petition dated April the 16th, 2020 and addressed to the AG of the Federation and Minister for Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN) called for the investigation and prosecution of Bello.

 

The petition titled “Request to investigate and prosecute the threats of sexual violence and gang-rape by Mr. Bello El-Rufai”, was signed on behalf of 67 groups by the Executive Director of Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre, Dr. Abiola Akiyode – Afolabi and Convener of Women in Politics Forum, Ebere Ifendu. It was also also made available to journalists yesterday April 19. 

 

Below is the letter in full; 

 

 “We, the undersigned women-led and women-focused non-governmental organisations, activists and scholars write to request you to use your position as the Chief Law Officer of Nigeria to direct immediate action to investigate and prosecute  Mr. Bello El Rufai (who incidentally is the son of the incumbent Governor of Kaduna State), over threats of sexual violence and gang-rape he made against the mother of another Nigerian online via series of tweets last week.

“According to the information we obtained from the Internet and which we verily believe was posted by Mr. Bello El-Rufai and which he has not disavowed so far, he bullied and intimidated a man who reportedly called him “daddy’s boy” in the course of online interactions between them by offering a series of threats and making grossly offensive statements. The threats, intimidation and offensive statements are contained in his online chats.”

“With due respect, we believe that Mr. Bello El-Rufai’s conduct by written speech posted online committed crimes prohibited under Cybercrimes (Prohibition) Act, 2015 and the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015.

"Permit us to refer you specifically to Section 24 of the Cybercrime which criminalises cyberstalking in its different manifestations, including the following: knowingly or intentionally sending a message by means of computer systems or network grossly offensive, pornographic or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character or knowingly or intentionally transmitting or causing to be transmitted any communication through a computer system or network to bully, threaten or harass another person where such communication places another person in fear of death, violence or bodily harm.

“Permit us also to refer you to Section 26 of the Cybercrimes Act which criminalises racist and xenophobic offences, where the scope of such offences extends to ethnic origin as the basis of differentiation. And finally, we refer you to Section 18 of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act (VAPP Act) which criminalises intimidation of another person; and intimidation is defined in Section 46 as ‘the uttering or conveying of a threat or causing any person to receive a threat, which induces fear, anxiety and or discomfort.’

“We must point out that this case is, indeed, very telling of how women’s rights are readily violated in Nigeria and why there is an urgent need for committed action by the state to deal with egregious crimes of gender-based violence as this case presents.

"For emphasis, we note that this was a case of a dispute between two men on perceptions of the adequacy of the quality of political leadership offered by men, how did it come to be that Mr. El Rufai considered that the best way to settle the score was to threaten such egregious acts of sexual violence against a woman (representing other women) who was not a part of the dispute.

“From all the above, it is clear that the threats of violence, intimidation, grossly offensive and obscene statements made by Mr. Bello El Rufai via his tweets posted online fall squarely within the genre of reprehensible acts that the National Assembly as the custodians of Nigeria’s corporate morality has deemed right to prohibit as crimes.

“Noting that the statements by Mr. Bello El Rufai threatening sexual violence and gang-rape as well as xenophobic attacks have been widely shared on social media platforms, with world-wide reach and noting also that the conduct violates the laws of Nigeria, it can be expected that it is not only Nigerians who are now looking to your office for justice but the whole world.

“Furthermore, against the backdrop of incessant and brazen acts of gender-based violence perpetrated by highly placed public officials even in the public sphere, we dare say that there is no better time than now for the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice to take effective steps to affirm unequivocally before the whole world that Nigeria is a state governed by the Rule of Law and assure Nigerians that they can expect that laws enacted by the legislature will be upheld through prosecution, where there is clear evidence of breach; that no-one is above the law; and that all Nigerians regardless of gender, ethnicity and age will be made secure in their person and property through effective enforcement of the law designed to protect them.

“Indeed, we are hopeful that this request be given immediate attention as it will dawn a new day in the quest for gender justice in Nigeria. While we await your kind response, please accept the assurance of our highest regard.”

 We hope that this matter is not swept under the carpet. 

Comments

You may also want to read these ⤵️

Referee kills player in a football match

A referee is facing murder charges after football players allegedly forced him to

Do not watch this while driving

Kids are lovely and fun to watch most times. I know most of you did this and so many other funny stuffs as a kid. Feel free to share yours... Do not watch this while driving

The Pros and Cons Of COVID-19 Contact Tracing Apps

                Written by                Jack -  Guest author Contact tracing apps seem to be the new fad. Their popularity is also one that comes on the back of a series of unfortunate events. They seem to hold another approach to fighting the menace of a disease that has claimed no less than 400,000 lives worldwide. The widespread race to get these apps working can also be attributed to the coming together of two big names in tech, Apple and Google, to make the frameworks for such apps happen. Like every other thing, though, how does the scales tip in favor of, or against, these apps? The Case for Contact Tracing Apps In April alone, the US people lost more jobs than the economy had been able to gain in about a combined decade. More unemployment claims are filed daily, while companies do not take their staff out of furlough anytime soon. Businesses are folding up daily, too, especially those still p...

Over 40 Million Accounts Found Guilty

Microsoft has uncovered 44 million user accounts using usernames and passwords that have been leaked through security breaches.

RAW TALENT ep1 (freestyle by Gdlpeid)

Just watch! Freestyle by ''Gdlpeeid''. A rapper with a difference.  Pure raw talent.

These 10 Powerful Words And Phrases Defined The Decade

Honestly, it has been a wonderful decade to remember.  A lot has happened and a lot has been spoken also. But our focus is on the words and phrases spoken.  Below are words and phrases spoken between 2010 - 2019 that defined the decade.....

By February 2020 - WhatsApp Will Stop Working on These Phones

Every now and then, WhatsApp does fish out a list of old phones for which support is discontinued and if you have an old phone lying around as a backup, you might want to read on.

Apple Has Released iOS 13.2.2 And Fixes Major Issue

All thanks to Apple,  the tech  giant just released iOS 13.2.2, which addresses the issue of background apps being killed prematurely, along with a handful of other annoyances.

This Magnetic thread Can Be Used To Clear Blood Clot in The Brain

Link from mashable.com  Researchers at MIT developed a thread that can be steered magnetically to glide through the brain's blood vessels and

This gigantic monster device turns wave energy into electricity

This 826-ton buoy was developed by OceanEnergy to turn wave energy into electricity. IEEE Spectrum reported that "OE Buoy" was towed from Oregon to Hawaii, where it will undergo a series of tests that will prove whether it can withstand the battering waves while generating electricity. Click the link below to watch the video..