By Ismail Auwal
Churches have come under fire from Reverend Micheal Akin Bobole for failing to give women their due in society.
The Reverend, who leads services at the New Cherebim & Seraphim Church in Kaduna, said it is a sad trend that women are now viewed as inferior to men.
The religious leader who spoke in Kano at a national dialogue with interfaith and cultural leaders organised by Women’s Rights Advancement and Protection Alternatives (WRAPA) and the Bayero University Kano Centre for Islamic Civilization and Interfaith Dialogue (CICID-BUK) encouraged women to develop the ability to speak up when their rights are being infringed upon.
“Churches should give women the roles they deserve, and it is our responsibility to forbade stereotyping in worship centres,” he said.
Bobole also called on the society to make it a collective responsibility in fight against violence against women.
The program which will supported by by Ford Foundation aimed to encourage conversations seeking to correct faith and culture misrepresentations and attributions in the prevalence of some forms of violence against women and girls in different social settings as well as encourage the enforcement of consequences for violations thereby ensuring protection for vulnerable persons everywhere.
The VAWG National Dialogue is convened under the auspices of a WRAPA project contributing to the reduction of the prevalence of violations, especially in families, schools, and other social spaces, while also seeking to promote the application of consequences against VAWG offenders. For this reason, the Dialogue brings together faith and culture leaders, VAWG response experts, and survivors from across Nigeria.
The Dialogue is aimed at creating a safe space for tough conversations that would help to correct faith and cultural perceptions and misrepresentations that allow related narratives to justify some forms of violence against women and girls in different social settings.
Through this project, WRAPA uses social accountability from VAWG offenders driven by the strengthened agency and voices of women and girls supported by faith and culture leaders.
