By Ahmed ‘Lateef
A fast rising Afro Pop Star, Ayokanmi Oluwasegun Eyanro, has attributed upsurge in rape cases in the country to silence culture, intimidation and weaker laws, which embolden the culprits and make it herculean for victims to secure justice.
Professionally known as Frequencie in the music industry, Eyanro called for a holistic review of relevant laws to punish sexual offenders.
In a statement issued in Ilorin at the weekend, the singer added that no rapist should go unpunished irrespective of their social status.
Frequencie, who is also a social justice advocate, said the movement against rape and sexual violence was apt and timely and called on the government to introduce stiffer penalty for rapists.
The Afro Pop Star, who recently released Afro Culture EP, however, urged security agencies to thoroughly investigate rape and sexual violence allegations to avoid inflicting punishment on innocent persons or victims of blackmail.
He admonished parents and guardians to give proper sex education to their children regardless of gender, saying females are not the only victims of rape as studies also prove that male and people of same sex have been sexually abused in the past.
The Herald On Sunday reports that rise in cases of rape in the country sparked nationwide protests last week where students’ unions, youth groups and civil society organizations called for action to stem the tide of the ugly occurrence.
The protests followed the gruesome killing of Vera Uwaila Omozuwa, a 100 Level Microbiology female student of University of Benin inside a church in Benin-City, Edo State after she was raped and another National Diploma female student of Laboratory Technology at the Federal College of Animal and Production Technology, Moore Plantation, Apata, Ibadan, Barakat Bello, who was also raped and murdered thereafter.
