Nigeria’s First Lady and wife of the President, Senator Oluremi Tinubu has appealed to state governors and lawmakers to prescribe capital punishment for kidnapping in the country.
While lamenting the abduction of children and women whom she says are the future of the country, Remi Tinubu described the act as heart-rending.
Her media aide Busola Kukoyi quoted Remi Tinubu as saying this during a meeting with the national women leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the State House, Abuja.
“They are cowards. Our hearts bleed. I call on the state governments that once we take hold of them, they deserve capital punishment. Why can’t they take men of their size, why are they touching women and children,” Remi Tinubu according to a Friday statement by Busola.
“What they are doing is that they are trying to kill our future, we all know that when parents are old, we rely on our children, we see them as our investments that have not gone to waste especially when they are successful.
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“Why will you now take them from their schools? Right now, I think enough is enough. As a former lawmaker, I believe that any one of them captured deserves capital punishment.
“I believe most mothers will support me on this because we carry our children for nine months, and we cannot watch what we love to wither away,” she said.
Senator Tinubu also told the women that the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu places a strong emphasis on creating opportunities for women to thrive economically, socially, and politically.
“As women, we constitute a significant portion of our society, and it is vital that our voices are heard and our contributions acknowledged. As women leaders, your role is very crucial to our nation’s development. You are the eyes and ears of the Government at the grassroots. I therefore encourage you to set a robust agenda for empowerment, inclusion, and welfare of women within our Party and across the Nation,” she told the gathering.
Friday’s meeting coincided with the 2024 International Women’s Day with Remi Tinubu celebrating Nigerian women for their courage, resilience, and doggedness.
“On my part, the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI) was established to focus on championing women’s causes and implementing various programmes and initiatives nationwide with our motto, which states, ‘Towards a better life for families’.
“Accelerating progress in any endeavour requires that women have to be more involved, that is why I see investing in women, not as charity, but as a crucial strategy to build the future of our dear nation, Nigeria.
“Empowering women with education, resources, and opportunities to unlock their full potentials, such as supporting women’s businesses, investing in women’s health, agricultural programmes for women, and creating pathways for women in science and technology will help in dismantling economic and social barriers that women face.
”Therefore, my charge to you all is to be each other’s keeper, let us all come together, bond, and love one another. Each of you should commit to pulling a sister up, one at a time. You will all be amazed at what we can achieve collectively,” she said.
Earlier, the group, led by its national leader, Dr Mary Alile; her deputy, Zainab Ibrahim, and members of the executive, thanked Senator Remi for her impact on the lives of Nigerians through various interventions on the platform of the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI).