Amid the worsening hardship and looting of warehouses within the nation, the Government Director, Girls Assist Collective, WACOL, Prof Pleasure Ezeilo, has suggested the federal government to begin speedy implementation of meals banks, meals stamps and different social safety and security internet choices.
She mentioned this In a press release revealed on her social media handles on Monday.
Ezeilo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, expressed dismay over the latest Abuja looting, blaming it on extreme starvation and excessive poverty.
She mentioned “The extreme starvation and excessive poverty confronted by many poor and susceptible Nigerians can push them in the direction of felony actions.
“I bear in mind a case the place I defended a 17-year-old orphan woman on enchantment. She had been sentenced to 3 years in jail for stealing cassava from a farm. She was hungry and determined, but the Justice of the Peace nonetheless utilized the regulation.
“Nevertheless, I pleaded as a professional bono defence lawyer, then representing the Society for the Welfare of Girls Prisoners, SWEWP, for her to be acquitted based mostly on her age, being a first-time offender and the circumstances that led her to commit the crime.”
She additional acknowledged that Nigerians ought to be conscious that stealing is against the law and if caught, the perpetrators will likely be held accountable in response to the penal legal guidelines.
Based on Ezeilo, “The poor have restricted selections and infrequently should select between a rock and a tough place. However, stealing and changing items and meals shouldn’t be an possibility.
“Now’s the time for the federal government in any respect ranges, to work in partnership with non-profit organisations and the non-public sector to contemplate implementing meals banks, meals stamps, and different social safety and security internet choices to supply meals for the poor and most susceptible Nigerians.
“That is particularly essential for kids, pregnant ladies, nursing moms, and the aged.
