Why child right act met a hitch in Gombe ― Committee Chairman

IT has been disclosed that the Child’s Right Act 2003 could not be domesticated in Gombe State because some portions of the law are believed to be in contradiction with some basic Islamic principles and injunctions.

Chairman of the committee set up by the Gombe State government to study the Child’s Right Act 2003 for domestication in the State, Abdul-Ghaniy M. Bello, made the disclosure while explaining reasons why the law has not been domesticated several years after its adoption by the Federal Government of Nigeria.

Speaking with Journalists during a one day consultative meeting on ‘Child’s Right Law’ passage in Gombe State jointly implemented by Bauchi Radio Corporation (BRC), and the Gombe State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare (MWASW), and funded by European Union, Abdul-Ghaniy Bello, said that some portions of the law met a brick wall when it came at loggerheads with some Islamic injunctions.

According to him, some of the contending issues include the age of marriage of females, the age of adulthood and the issue of a child having the right to sue his/her parents among some others.

He further explained that these issues and a few others, generated tension and confusion among the generality of the people, as some felt it was a law meant to impose certain Western cultures at the detriment of their religious beliefs and traditions.

Abdul Ghaniy Bello who is representing Jama’atul Nasir Islam (JNI) in the committee also said that an attempt on the bill which got to the State House of Assembly some years back, was thwarted on the floor of the House for the same reasons and which was why the State government had to set up the current committee last year.

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A representative of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), in the Committee, Victor Laima Alkali, who also corroborated Abdul-Ghaniy’s submission stated that CAN accepted the CRL based on the Holy Bible injunctions and stressed that the law completely protects the Child.

Victor Laima Alkali pointed out that there were divergent positions on issues raised by JNI which were however resolved citing an example on the issues of inheritance, where Islam forbade a child gotten out of wedlock from any inheritance and said these and other similar laws can only be applicable to Muslims but for the Christians, he said as long as paternity is established, the child has inheritance.

The Yariman Gombe, Alhaji Abdulkadir Abubakar Umar, who is also a member of the committee from the side of the traditional rulers, said the traditional institutions in the State ensured that the laws did not temper with the people’s religion and cultures.

The fifteen-man committee which comprised of representatives of CAN, JNI, traditional rulers, NGOs CSOs among others is expected to submit its report to the State Government soonest before it will then be forwarded to the Gombe State House of Assembly for legislation.

Meanwhile, the Child Protection Specialist, UNICEF Nigeria, Bauchi Field Office, whose goodwill message was presented by Adamu Mamman Puma, Assistant Director, Child Development in the Gombe State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare said the Forum is expected to provide a platform to know exactly how far the committee has gone as well as give stakeholders the opportunity to discuss and identify the next action and strategies for further supporting all the efforts and to join hands together to push forward.