President Muhammadu Buhari has appealed to all Nigerians including security chiefs to join hands with government in stemming the increasing spate of violence against the Nigerian child.
In His message to mark the 2018 Children’s Day celebration, in the country, President Buhari said his administration in the last three years has focused attention on the protection of the welfare of the Nigerian child.
“As you may recall, one of the cardinal objectives of this administration is the provision of quality education to our children as a fundamental foundation of economic and social development.
“In this regard, I am pleased to inform you that this administration has recorded measurable success in the home grown school feeding programme as it has continued to expand.
He called “on the Families, Security Agencies, Traditional Rulers, Religious Leaders, Civil Society Organizations, Human Rights Activists, and the Society at large to rise up and take urgent and decisive actions to stem the unacceptable rising cases of violence against our children.
“We must ensure safety of our children in homes, schools, markets, worship centers, on the streets and everywhere at all times”.
O the theme for this year’s celebration “Creating Safe Spaces for Children: Our Collective Responsibility, the President urged security agencies in the country to provide adequate cover for schools across the country to safe guard the lives of the Nigerian student.
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He said “this administration has directed the management of all Federal Government Colleges and advised all state owned schools across the Country to provide adequate measures of safety and security of their students.
“I again call on all schools management committees at all levels of public and private institutions to take adequate security measures and put in place mechanisms for safety of children”.
President Buhari also appealed “to parents not to relent in their efforts to send their wards to school, especially the girl child as her education reduces infant and maternal mortality and prevents early and child marriages.
“It also increases literacy and reduces poverty. The saying that to educate a woman is to educate the nation is very apt in this regard”.
Speaking further on the protection of the Nigerian child, the President disclosed that his government “has made giant strides in the protection of the Rights of the Nigerian Child and as a result of such efforts, Nigeria has been declared a path-finding Country on Ending Violence Against Children.
“This I believe is a collective achievement and I urge us to continue to build on the present momentum to achieve the targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”.
While recalling his experiences with three year old Maya Jammal who prayed for him while on medical vacation, 10 year old Aisha Aliyu Gebbi who wrote a personal letter to him, describing herself as the Buhari’s “biggest fan”, and Nicole Benson, then 12 years old, who had contributed the sum of Five Thousand, Seven Hundred Naira and Eighty-Five kobo (N5,700.85) to his campaign in 2015, the President said “our children are our future, and the initiatives that come from them give confidence that our country has a bright future.”
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