Over the years, women in Nigeria as in most parts of the world have
been exposed to various forms of abuses. One of these is
sexual abuse which occurs at various stages of the woman's life.
 Although reports have in recent times shown that rape is not a crime
perpetrated only against women; evidence of past events have also
indicated that the female folk if twice as prone to the menace as
the mail folk.
 More so, the latest trend in our turbulent democracy where military
and paramilitary personnel who are supposed to protect the life and
dignity of Nigerians join in this dastardly act of destroying the life
of innocent young children, mostly girls, makes it necessary to draw
the attention of government again to this unholy trend and find
other ways of alleviating the sufferings of the innocent victims.
 A couple of days back, the case of a four year old young girl raped by a
police officer in Jos was  was reported on the stables of the Nigerian
and international media. The police officer Mr. Damudu Bzigu was a
member of the Joint Task
Force in Jos, expected to protect the girl and her likes from
terrorist and other terrible people cajoled the girl and ripped her of
her dignity.
Although the man was asked to pay a huge sum as compensation for the
crime, the damage done will evidently remain for a long time in the
young girl's life.

The provisions of the law in Nigeria may have provided for certain
duration of time in prison as jail term for the crime of rape, but is
that really enough, is it worth justifying that a fully grown adult
takes it upon himself to cause such life pain on a minor and is made
only to face a short term in prison. Most survivors of rape certainly
bare more pain than any penalty can inflict upon the perpetrators of
the act.
This is the confession of some rape survivors at a rally organized to
educate Nigerians about the many effects of rape in our society, with
the theme, stand to end rape.

 "Habiba, was raped14 years ago,
at the age of 13 In Lagos. The
incident was so bad that
after been sexually abused  by seven men. Habiba found herself at a hospital.
  She tells her story: "I was raped when I was 13 years old on my way
back from a tutorial class. suddenly a car parked besides me and the
men who jumped out of the car, pulled me in, and they started beating
me. To cut story short; they raped me.

 After the whole incident I became unconscious for two whole weeks,
 during the period in which I was hospitalized".

 For someone who had being through such pain, one would naturally
expect that moral justice should give her parents courage to fight for
her, but this is what she had to say about her parent's reactions.
  "My mother asked me not to tell anyone about it, due to stigma at my
age that it
could affect me in future;  while my father was rather outrageous
about everything.
 It was horrible. The feeling is not something I can easily explain and
 I was unable to speak out. I attempted suicide several times,
 I was only able to speak out a year ago when a lady called Bunmi
Shobowale was sharing her rape story on twitter. I read through the
story and discovered that her story was worse than mine, so if she
could share her story, I felt I could too.

 I got her number and asked her how she got the courage; she told me
 that she had gotten the strength from God adding that she discovered
 after bottling the pain for so long that it was necessary for her to
speak out. She felt that her voice may help to save the lives of many
dying people out there.

 Ayodeji, Simisola, Bunmi, Inya Ode,Coach Sam obafemi, bukky
shonibare, Praise fowowe and grace festus Alao; all encouraged me to
Speak out that it might Help someone. I hesitated  at first, but later
agreed to do it.
 We had a tweet section with Ayodeji Osowobi, of "Ster initiative".
 I shared my story. I realized that I was exultant at being alive.
Being raped was terrible beyond words but being Alive is more
important.

  A lot of young Nigerians especially females have had this experience
in the past. We as Nigerians must learn to be more hospitable to them.
When a woman is abused it is not in any way her fault, she did not
wake up and planned that she wants to be abused. Rape is not specific
to any group of women Nor a rapists a particular group of Men. A
rapists could be a brutal Mad man or the boy Next door or the too
friendly Uncle or Aunty that comes by the house. Let's acknowledge
rape universally and join hands
together in ending this menace Called rape.

  I am a Rape survivor, I didn't ask to be raped, it was the worst
Torture I have ever had, If you are a Rape Survivor please let's go
off the pains, it was never you fault".
Very ellocuent, you would say; Another victim of the mayhem, Togbe
Aigba also said she was raped at the age of six by her uncle.
 "I was been left with my uncle and his family while my parents go  to
 work, and one day I was sleeping, but suddenly I woke up to realize
 that someone was coming into me, and there was this tickling feeling.
 That was how I was rubbed of my woman dignity. I could not tell my
 parents, though I knew for certain what had happened to me.
 Though it's not something one can completely get over, I have learnt
 quite a lot of lessons from it. I have a son today and I have thought
 him that no one has the right to touch his private part. Even I am
 only permitted to touch that part of him when bathing him. If any one
 comes close to him in that region he should quickly inform me about
 it".

 And Blossom Nnodim says she was raped at her teen age, by her supposed
boyfriend. "It happened when I was still in my teens. I thought I was
in love. But one day when we ware at his apartment, my boyfriend just
tried to practice what he had seeing probably on the television with me.
I tried to say no; but obviously my no was either not loud enough; or
his passion was stronger than the strength of my voice.  Though I am
married today and my husband knows I was once abused. But that has not
disturbed my dream of a happy life because I know I was not in any way
responsible for being raped. It is the person who did it that should
feel terrible and guilty. Not myself".

Dr Ogochi Nnadi Talks about the psychological effects of rape,
especially on children. "The effects of rape on children could be
physical or psychological. The physical effects include injury, like
the breaking of the Hymen, infections, and even pregnancies. While the
psychological effects include: depression, post traumatic stress
disorder, then we also have the effect of low self esteem. This is
more prominent among girls, or the female folk.
 You know that in this part of the world, the notion that women are of
a lower sex is highly prevalent. Now when you combine that with the
knowledge of the fact that the lady in question has been abused, there
is the tendency for her to look completely down on herself.
 Also in most cases people who have been raped have the propensity to
attempt murder, or to become drug addicts, or chain smokers.
 They also have the propensity of victimizing others, either by rape,
or by worse acts, like killing people; becoming serial killers or even
probably victimizing others.


Mrs Timidi Digha-Omolere who organized the group of women on a rally
to end rape had this to say about her experience
"My child was not raped, but she narrowly escaped it. I thought my baby
right from the age of one to guide against rape. I told her that no
one must touch her on her private parts, and if any one tried it, she
should tell mummy. As
she was growing we were advancing in what I was telling her. On the
faithful day the act was to have happened, the young man was trying
to pull her trousers and there was a very big struggle.  At the
end of the struggle, their ware marks all over her body.
She tried telling me during the day, but because of the crowd in our
house, she could tell me the detail. Then later at night she told me
the whole thing and showed me the mark on her body. I went to the
police and they said they did not think anything like
that happened, asking me what she knows at that age. So I went to his
house because I was raged and afraid; knowing what people like that
could do. I took a knife and trekked to his house. And I am glad that
people intervened because with the kind of anger I was bottling I do
not know what I would have been capable of. Because he is a family
friend.
After that time I issued a warning that I did not want to see
him close to my house and today, even when his parents come visiting he does
not join them. He was 13 when this happened"
Timidi's group therefore calls for rehabilitation centers for rape victims.
"Rehabilitation centers will help to fight against
rape. It is in places like that we can collectively look into the
psychological effect of rape on victims. At rehabilitation centers,
persons who have been abused will be able to be helped so that they
regain their self worth and very necessarily, that they desist from
becoming a threat to others.

With a rape rehabilitation center, rape victims will be less like to do
drugs or become affected with most negative effects of rape.
Another issue that should be looked into to help fight the negative
effects of rape is the creation of rape crisis centers. When you go to
the police station as a person that has been raped, more often
than not the victim is not taken seriously.
The situation is so bad that some rape victims are even blamed by their
parents, for being raped. Even mothers sometimes behave in this manner
towards the rape victim. With a rape crises center, greater
concentration will be given to the victims such that they will be
taken seriously, and the rape cases, treated accordingly.
We also want a review of the constitution on rape, Nationwide". She says