Kano Govt. Pledges Life Imprisonment for Rape Suspect of Six-month-old Baby
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Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano
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Deeply saddened by a story of a six-month-old baby girl allegedly raped by a close confidant in Kano, the state government has said it would make whoever is found guilty the first to pay the supreme price of life imprisonment.
A statement signed by the commissioner for Information, Youth and Culture, Malam Muhammad Garba and made available to THISDAY in Kano indicated that Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has directed the state ministry of Justice to handle the matter properly by ensuring that it is delivered to the latter.
According to the statement, whoever is involved in this sordid sexual crime will be prosecuted under the relevant provision contained in the Kano State Penal Code Amendment Law referred to as the ‘Principal Law’ as amended under Section 283.
“Whoever commits rape, shall be punished with imprisonment for life or for any lesser term not below fourteen years and shall be liable to a fine of N200,000 and in addition thereto be required by court to pay compensation to the victims.â€
It said “the despicable and condemnable act which is alien to our religious and cultural values, more so of a baby, is indicative of how brutalised and unfeeling perpetrators of such heinous crimes have become and therefore deserve nothing more than a punishment proportionate to their crimes.â€
The statement assured parents of the baby and all those sympathetic with them that appropriate legal action will be taken, while the government of Kano state will put the medical bill of the victim.
It said as part of collective effort to bring to an end the appalling incidents of rape cases, particularly against the minors, parents should always look after their wards, their movement and those they keep company with.
The statement also charged the clergy to use their places of worship to propagate the dangers of this crime and for prayers for respite from this and other illicit activities being perpetrated by men of the underworld.
