Minister of Women Affairs Urges Women to Shut Up During Disputes With Their Husbands To Avert Abuse
The Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohaneye, has urged wives to remain silent in the event of a domestic dispute.
During a conference in Abuja on Wednesday, Kennedy-Ohaneye made this plea on behalf of the Nigerian government's women's affairs ministries.
The minister emphasised the importance of refraining from verbal altercations in order to avert potentially fatal "physical confrontations".
She said, “I am equally begging my women not to look for trouble, not even at home. Maintain peace in your home because if a home is peaceful, the woman has 80 percent to contribute to that. If you need peace, you can equally achieve it."
“Keep your mouth shut. Talking back does not yield fruit, rather it leads to death and destruction, it leads to bringing up bad children for society."
“Keep your mouth shut, it does not make you a fool but a wise person. When the man is shouting and saying all sorts of things, act like a fool and keep your mouth shut."
“After a while, watch him. If he is a good man, he will come back to apologise. If he is not a good one, ignore him. Have what you want to do in your mind, but when we show who we are and we fight back, most times, it leads to hitting; you could be injured."
“The same man that injures you will come back to say I am sorry. What will you do? Will you kill him? Even if we come out to fight for you and you lose one eye, are we going to replace the eye? So prevention is better than cure.”
A law creating a mobile court to hear cases involving sexual and gender-based offences was proposed by the minister.
She said she will spearhead a demonstration to the federal office of the attorney general and minister of justice to get the bill signed.
According to Kennedy-Ohaneye, the minister would also establish an integrity group to track all donations meant to empower women in the nation.
The minister justified the move by saying that, given the country's present predicament, it was clear that donor money intended to empower women were misdirected.