The Speaker of Osun House of Assembly, Mr Timothy Owoeye, on Wednesday, reiterated that anyone found guilty of rape will face life imprisonment.
Owoeye stated this during plenary and while receiving members of the Federation of Muslim Women Association in Nigeria (FOMWAN), who visited the assembly.
FOMWAN members had visited the assembly to appeal to the lawmakers to take necessary steps to stop the raising cases of rape in the state.
The speaker, while accommodating the Muslim group during the day’s plenary, said that cases of rape in the country had reached an alarming stage and must be addressed by all stakeholders.
He said the assembly had, in 2002, enacted an anti-rape law, which prescribed life imprisonment for perpetrators of rape.
“Section 358 of the Criminal Code, Cap 34, Vol. 11, Laws of Osun State, 2002, prescribes a life sentence for anyone found guilty of committing rape, while an attempt to commit rape attracts an imprisonment of 14 years,” he said.
Owoeye said that the Director of Legal Services in the assembly had also been directed to be present at all rape- related cases in the courts in the state so that victims could get justice.
According to him, the assembly will not rest as far as the issue of rape is concerned.
Earlier in her address, Alhaja Kudirat Oladunmoye, the state Amirah of FOMWAN, said that the issue of rape, both in the state and in the country, was becoming a pandemic.
“No woman is safe again now, because women of different ages and even babies are being sexually-violated,” she stated.
Oladunmiyo, therefore, appealed to the assembly to take steps that would curb the rising menace in the state.
She also said that the national Amirah of FOMWAN had directed that the state leaders of the association to appeal to the people in authority to take bold steps to stop the rising tide of rape in the country.
The group, after presenting its matter before the assembly, also submitted an appeal letter, which was received by the Clerk, Mr Simeon Amusan.
The assembly members, thereafter, listened to a lecture, delivered by Prof. Kayode Alao of Guidance and Counselling Department, Faculty of Education, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun.
The lecture, entitled: “Practical Implication of Leadership Psychology and Emotional Intelligence for Healthy Living”, was part of the activities marking the first anniversary of the lawmakers.
It was aimed at teaching the legislators the importance of their emotion and psychology to their roles as political leaders.
