Written by a kfber, Amaka Don.
Everyone is indeed doing their best by lending their voices in whatever
way they can to see that ‘our girls’ are brought back. As much as I
understand what it means to be a parent, I also know and can explain the
joys and pains of motherhood. The parents of these children are indeed
going through pain but their mothers feels the major pain. Why? You may
ask, that is because, they carried them for 9months, they went through
the labor pain, they gave that child her bath, they breast fed that
child, she knows when the child is sick and so many other reasons that
will make every mother educated or not to to agree with me that their
mothers are bearing the major pain. Don’t get it twisted fathers are
wonderful when it comes to security of their children.
To everyone who has been carrying the #hashtag#, I say you are indeed
doing a great job by lending your own voice, to the international
bodies, thanks for your heart warming concern. It could have happened to
any of us or our relations! #God forbid# someone will say. Truth be
told nobody wishes for evil or painful experience. Today I say to every
concerned individual that truly it goes beyond carrying the written word
on the card, protesting on the streets, posting comments on social
media, it really goes beyond granting interview on television stations.
It is not time to start blaming the president or any leader. It is
equally not time to make mockery of the first lady’s vocabularies or
make shirts with them. It is time to make a permanent and positive
change. In fact I’m beginning to get irritated with the way some people
are using this situation to create some cheap publicity stunt.
I intend to lend my voice on a different platform, which is to say
that we should go beyond the tag and start working on how to protect
children, girls and women permanently. We started showing what I call
semi- maximum concern because girls were kidnapped. When they are found,
everyone including me, says a general ‘ thank God’ and that ends it.
Who then will care about helping them come out of their psychological
trauma? Who helps them lead a normal life? Who makes them understand
that being a woman is not bad, but being a slave is terrible? Who helps
erase the memories of their tortures and give them sweet memories that
is filled with sparkles of a bright future? Who will tell them that
their father land is not a ‘ horror zone’, but the greed in the heart of
many is not letting them embrace peace? Who will tell them that
education, security and freedom is their right.
As we begin to find answers to all these questions and so many other
ones, I challenge us this day to lend our voices for every girl child
that is being ill treated, lend your voices for that little girl being
given out in marriage (child bride) ,lend your voices for that girl that
has been raped and cannot speak out because of fear or Shame, for those
women that has been and are victims of domestic violence, to those
girls or ladies being abused in their places of work, to the ones being
sexually harassed, to the girl’s being threatened by lecturers to give
in their bodies before they can pass their exams in the universities, to
those widows being harassed by greedy in laws or being accused that she
has a hand in her husband death, I say lend your voices and see why it
must go beyond carrying of tags and protesting on the streets.
Stand up for a girl child today and make a woman’s future prosper. We
all have roles to play, give your house help right to education, don’t
bully your female sisters, love your wives and correct in love, give the
right grade without demanding a female students body, see that girl you
intend to rape as own sister or daughter, give a woman a chance to
proof her worth through hard work. Encourage a woman today by strongly
supporting and encouraging them. It truly goes beyond the # bring back
our girls# tag.