To ensure complete eradication of all forms of harmful practices against women and the girl child, Rivers House of Assembly has passed into law the Dehumanizing And Harmful Traditional Practices Abolition Amendment Bill.
The bill which is seeking to primarily amend sections 1 and 2 of Dehumanizing And Harmful Traditional Practices Abolition Law of 2003 will also correct certain ills like forcing a widow to drink corpse water of a diseased husband, making women dance naked among others in the principal law.
Prior to passing of the bill into law, the lawmakers had during the committee of whole, noted that the fines and prison terms as stipulated in the law of 2003 are so cheap that they cannot serve as a deterrent to offenders and stressed the need for stricter fines so as to discourage those who may wish to commit such crimes.
They also called for serious sanctions as well as the increase in the fines and jail terms and proposed two years imprisonment and five hundred thousand naira penalty against ten thousand naira fine in section 3 of the principal law.
Passing the bill into law, the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Ikuinyi Owaji Ibani noted that provisions of the 2003 law are no longer in line with the realities on ground.
He further said the objectives of the bill are consistent with that of the Act of the National Assembly and stressed the need to protect the girl child and the women in the Society.
Meanwhile, the House has referred to its Committee on Health a petition brought before it against Dorkson Medical Clinic, accusing the Chief Medical Director of running the clinic without relevant certification.
