Dipo Olowookere
By Dipo Olowookere
On Sunday, March 19, 2017, Mrs Bola Tinubu, wife of oil and gas magnate, Mr Wale Tinubu, will launch Nigeria’s flagship advocacy organization in Lagos, which aims to effectively tackle the menace of child sèxual abuse.
The ultra-modern relief and support centre is called the Cece Yara Child Advocacy Centre and will provide a warm, safe and friendly shelter for survivors.
The phrase ‘Cece Yara’ means ‘Save the child’ in Hausa language.
While at the facility, they will be given a comfortable environment to rise above whatever experience they might have been through.
Having taken into cognizance the major problems which could arise from child sèxual abuse, the centre is equipped with state of the art facilities tailored to assist the psychological and physical healing process of the survivor with a fully operational 24 hour hotline ready to cater to those in distress.
In recent times, research has shown that the incidence of child sèxual abuse in Nigeria is growing exponentially, statistics precisely state that one in four girls and one in ten boys experienced sèxual violence before 18.
As a response to these alarming figures, the establishment of the Cece Yara foundation has been a major breakthrough in the fight against child exploitation and sexual abuse.
The Cece Yara foundation believes that childhood should be a phase of purity and complete innocence, a period when the character of an individual is formed.
Founder of the organisation, Mrs Bola Tinubu, who is a lawyer and a staunch advocate for children, believes that the future of every child, regardless of gender, race or social background, should be preserved.
She is undauntedly ready to take on the fight against sexual abuse among children thus her drive and motivation for establishing and running the NGO.
The foundation strives to put in place programs and campaigns aimed at preventing child sèxual abuse, raising awareness on the issue and also giving the children a voice and a support system.
The activities and successes of this organization are laudable and truly encouraging.
One of the foundation’s recent accomplishments was getting justice for a 6 year old girl who was sèxually violated by an adult male. The accused was detained and charged to court in October 2016. On the 16th of February 2017, the Cece Yara foundation claimed justice for the victim and the accused was sentenced to seven years imprisonment without the option of fine.
The Cece Yara foundation played a pivotal role in bringing the sèx offender to book while providing legal support and psychological healing to the ‘survivor’ and her parents, through its Victim Advocacy Program.
The victory serves as a deterrent to perpetrators of child sèxual abuse in the country and a source of succour to survivors and their families.
NB: We are very sorry for describing Senator Oluremi Tinubu as founder of Cece Yara foundation, instead of Mrs Bola Tinubu, wife of Mr Wale Tinubu.
This error is highly regretted and was never intentional. Thanks
