The Niger State Council of Imams has issued a one-week ultimatum to the Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohannaya, to retract her recent comments condemning the the mass wedding initiative spearheaded by the Speaker of the Niger State House of Assembly, Abdulmalik Sarkin-daji.
The Speaker’s proposal entails sponsoring the mass wedding of 100 girls from his constituency who are either orphans or hail from financially disadvantaged families.
The Secretary of the Imam Council in the state, Umar Abdullahi, made this known at a press conference on Wednesday, where he warned the minister not to overstep her bounds.
Abdullahi said the Niger Imam Council viewed the minister’s utterances as capable of causing a crisis in the state and the country in general.
The minister had on Tuesday in Abuja condemned the planned mass weddings, saying it was a violation of the Child Rights Act.
Kennedy-Ohanenye disclosed that she had petitioned the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to stop the weddings, adding that she had also filed a suit, seeking a restraining injunction against the Niger Speaker.
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“The actions proposed by the Speaker are utterly unacceptable to the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and the government at large. We are duty-bound to uphold the Child’s Rights Act and ensure the welfare and future prospects of these girls,” Kennedy-Ohanenye declared at a press conference.
However, on Tuesday, the Niger Speaker denounced the action of the minister, saying she was dabbling into an issue she had no understanding of.
Sarkin-daji, said he had withdrawn his support for the wedding but would not withdraw the monetary donations made to the parents of the girls to facilitate the wedding.
He lambasted the minister for her alleged ignorance, saying she did not know anything about the circumstances that confronted the girls, which made it necessary for their weddings to be sponsored.
Sarkin-daji described as unfortunate and embarrassing the minister’s actions of blowing the whole matter out of proportion without first finding out from him the motive behind his gesture.
The Niger Council of Imams on Wednesday warned the minister to steer clear of religious and cultural matters and face her ministerial assignment.
The Imams insisted that no amount of court action would stop the wedding from taking place as planned for May 24.
“The planned weddings have the blessing of all the religious and traditional leaders from the area. The sponsor of the wedding consulted widely before accepting to take the responsibility and we are strongly behind him.
“The girls are not underage and they are not being forced into the marriage as the minister has made the public to believe. This is what the minister failed to investigate,” the council secretary said.
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