The Lagos State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Mrs. Bolaji Dada, has described domestic violence and sexual abuse as grave social ills that endanger peace, security, and the moral fabric of society.
In a statement, she noted that the menace cuts across age, class, and background, leaving survivors with invisible yet deeply damaging scars.
Dada stressed that domestic violence and sexual abuse are not private matters to be concealed behind closed doors but violations of human rights, crimes against humanity, and direct assaults on the dignity of women, children, and vulnerable persons.
She assured that the Lagos State Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation would continue to strengthen its Domestic and Sexual Violence Units to provide counselling, legal support, shelter, and economic empowerment for survivors.
According to her, government alone cannot win the fight against abuse.
She urged communities, families, religious institutions, schools, and individuals to unite, speak up when they witness abuse, and intervene whenever violence is suspected.
Writing by Ngozi Okpala