Women’s Rights and Health Project (WRAHP), managers of Ireti Resource Center, during the week enlightened Alimosho, and Ikotun Igando LCDAs’ community members in Lagos State of their rights.
The event titled ‘Community Legal Clinic’, was part of the Project: Improving Human Rights and Leadership Opportunity for Women and Young Girls in Alimosho LGA, which is funded by Global Affairs Canada, and being implemented through ActionAid Nigeria.
At the event organized by WRAHP, different topics where members of the society have their rights often abused were treated by legal practitioners.
Among the topics include employer and employee issues, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) issues, property issues like widowhood and inheritance rights, landlord and tenant rights, as well as how tenants can protect their rights.
Also discussed during the event were the rights of People Living with Disabilities (PWDs).
Speaking about the program, WRAHP’s Executive Director, Bose Ironsi said in a statement that the program was designed by WRAHP in partnership with ActionAid Nigeria to provide legal aid services to aid underprivileged and marginalized members of the community.
She said, “It will ensure these underprivileged communities have access to justice for all, most especially, for girls and women who are survivors of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV).
“This program provides an opportunity for community members to assess pro bono (free) lawyers.
“This clinic, typically, offers services such as legal representation, advice and counseling on the legal frame of SGBV Human Rights, Employment issues, Tenant and Landlord issues, etc., and assistance with safety planning and accessing other resources on Sexual and Gender-Based violence.”
The training is part of WRAHP’s efforts to ensure that survivors are well informed on their rights on legal issues.
“We will work with community structures including artisans, market women and men, Christian and Muslim clergies, and other community members.
“WRAHP is an innovative registered Non-Profit Organization with the core mission of promoting women and community health by equipping, mobilizing, and actively engaging members of the community as agents of social change through information sharing, capacity building, and advocacy.
“We are well aware that issues of SGBV cases are still rampant in communities in Lagos State, and it is our responsibility to ensure we follow up on our efforts to address the menace,” Ironsi said.
Also speaking, Abisoye Ajose, who doubles as WRAHP’s Monitoring and Evaluation Officer and Project Officer for the ActionAid Multi-Year Project, said the Legal Clinic is being implemented for 100 community representatives from Alimosho LGA.
“We want to use the program to enlighten them on some provisions of the law that affect them.
“There have been several cases from Alimosho, we want to use the project to bring about increase reporting of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) cases, to enlighten the communities on the rights of PWDs, among others.
“This program will enable the communities to access pro bono legal services about issues affecting women and men alike.”
“We have lawyers in our means who are willing to provide free legal services for the community members when their rights are being abused,” she added.
One of the participants at the event, a community leader and landlord, Habib Rabiu Mohammed, said the program was very exciting and interesting.
“There are some things we believe that we know concerning the law in Lagos State, but coming here today, I discovered that I only knew very little about these laws,” he said.
Further describing the event as an eye-opener for himself and other participants, Habib said, “There are certain things regarding the law which we ignorantly do. Some of the topics that struck me most are the rights of PWDs, and the Lagos State SGBV law.
“Attending this program opened my eyes to know more about domestic violence, especially as regards a man and his wife, and the disabled law.
Habib promised that as a community leader, he would pass the message of what he learned to his people.
