FIDA sets up emergency shelter for violated women in Plateau

By Kingsley Chukwuka

The Internal Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), Nigeria, Plateau State branch has set up an emergency shelter for abused and violated women either by their husbands, relatives or the male gender in the society.

The outgoing Chairperson of FIDA, Plateau State branch, Mrs Mary Izam, stated this at the weekend in Jos, while interacting with our correspondent on the successes achieved while her three years in office lasts.

Izam said the shelter is located at the FIDA Secretariat in Jos, newly acquired by the outgoing executives.

She said the emergency shelter became necessary due to the rising cases of violence against women.

“We have set up this shelter as a temporary place to keep abused women, especially those their husbands threw out of the house. While we pursue their case in court, we have a safe place to keep them as shelter over their heads”, Izam said.

However while outlining some of her achievement as Plateau FIDA boss for three years, Izam said she came up with a five points agenda in 2018 when elected, noting that her and her team did well to accomplish the five points target and even surpassed it.

She enumerated the agenda to be Advocacy visits to relevant stakeholders, Continued legal indication, Setting up of FIDA structures, Community service and Hosting of either AGM or NEC meeting.

“During our tenure it was possible for us to host the AGM which turned out super as testified by lawyers who where in attendance.

“We came onboard with all the zeal to achieve our five points agenda and with God on our side, we were able to achieve them.

“We started training on key gender violence, because that is our core mandate. We trained female lawyers on the mandate of FIDA and carried out advocacy programmes and visits to key strategic stakeholders”, she said.