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From Aloysius Attah, Onitsha
The Anambra State government has initiated moves for the prosecution of those denying females their rights of inheritance in the state.
The State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Tobechukwu Nweke, in a statement released in Awka, warned that persons who deny women and girls their right to inherit property on the basis of their gender will face prosecution. He said such a move was part of the efforts of the administration of Governor Chukwuma Soludo to protect women’s inheritance rights in the state.
Consequently, the Attorney General disclosed that the government had directed the Nigeria Police Force to investigate complaints of gender-based disinheritance and forward case files to his office for prosecution.
In a letter to the police, Nweke said the state government would commence legal action against offenders upon receipt of investigated cases.
The letter read in part: “The obnoxious practices of denying women and girls of their right to inherit property because they are females amount to a crime under Section 22 of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Law, 2017 of Anambra State and punishable with up to four years imprisonment.
“In the light of the foregoing, you are kindly requested to ensure that your office thoroughly investigates all reported cases of gender-based disinheritance and that the case files are transmitted to this ministry for further action.
“To effectively combat this practice, this ministry has designated the Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) Unit to handle the prosecution of offenders under the above-mentioned law, alongside other forms of domestic violence and sexual offences.”
There have been cases of female children being prevented from inheriting properties belonging to their parents on the grounds of customs and traditional practices in parts of the South East.
Soludo frowned that despite the decisions of the Supreme Court declaring as unconstitutional and illegal, customs and practices which exclude females from inheriting property, some members of the public in the state still indulge in the discriminatory practices.
