BySandra Ijeoma Okoye
“I slept with my 10-yr-old daughter for money rituals – Vanguard … “. “My father has been having se3 with me for years”, “My father has been sleeping with me for over 10 years — Daughter tells police”, “Why I Enjoy Sleeping With My 18 yrs Old Daughter – Father Explains”. Father, son, allegedly impregnate 13-year-old girl” and “Man Who Enjoys Sleeping With His Two Daughters Finally Caught.”
To anyone that is well acquainted with the media, the foregoing bizarre headlines are not unfamiliar, particularly in the recent time when fathers now amorously chase after their biological and step daughters. In fact, it is not absurd to say that the issue of incest is usually waved aside whenever it is mentioned for discussion as most families shield the taboo away from public domain. The reason for this cannot be far-fetched. Like witchcraft, the issue of incest is treated as a joke by some family members, saying it is “family affair” whereas in the days of yore it is abominable to mention it.
In my view, it is imprudent for anyone to be waving the issue of incestuous act by fathers against their biological daughter or step daughters aside. In fact, in African culture incestuous act is not dismissed with mere wave of the hands as been done today. In Igboland for instance, the breaking of taboo in the entire Igbo society usually required the extermination of the offender or some sort of ceremonial purification. This ceremonial purification was called “njucha”.
The Igbo name for taboo, “Aru” is believed to have been handed down from the earth goddess (Ala) from an unknown time. Like all the social and religious injunctions, “Aru” originated from unwritten laws. These laws were against moral and religious excesses in the society. There were variations of taboos in Igbo land, and some were often observed at births, deaths, marriage, etc.
For the fact that the reason why some libidinous and randy fathers indulge in such heinous act is beyond our ken does not mean that it should always be treated with abject levity whenever it is perpetrated lecherous and accursed fathers.
I must confess that I was inspired to write this piece in reaction to a recent confession by a 27-year-old man, Adeniyi Adeleke, who was arrested sometime in April last month by police detectives in Ondo State, for having carnal knowledge of her daughter. In his confession, Adeleke said he wanted to use her for money ritual.
Without being exaggerative, incidences of incest between fathers and their biological daughters or step daughters is by each passing day becoming a commonplace and worrisome. It would be recalled in this context that before Adeleke’s confession that there was an incestuous case which involved a 45-year-old Akanji Oluwaseyi who allegedly had unlawful carnal knowledge of his 13-year-old daughter.
The Ogun State Police spokesman, Abimbola Oyeyemi who made the disclosure to Journalists informed that the suspect was arrested following a complaint lodged by the daughter at Obantoko divisional headquarters on December 30, 2021. He said the victim had told the police that her father came to the shop where she is undergoing apprenticeship in tailoring and pleaded with her mistress to permit her to come and fetch water for him at home.
According to Oyeyemi, the girl stated further that she went home to fetch water as requested by her father only to be sexually molested as he suddenly grabbed her and forcefully had carnal knowledge of her. Explanatorily put, Incest is defined as the sexual relationship between close blood relatives who are forbidden by law to marry. While many developed nations around the world have criminalized incest, it appears no specific provision against this crime exists in Nigeria; though some laws against incest exist on paper.
At this juncture, it is expedient to say that it is imperative to have an effective law against incest in Nigeria, in keeping with the principles of criminal law, especially with regards to child sexual abuse within the family. In fact, there is a need to implement a new law related to criminalizing fathers who have the predilection of committing incest against their daughters as it is becoming commonplace and worrisome.
Without any iota of exaggeration, the idea of incest is considered to be a social taboo in many cultures and societies. However, lately the criminalization of incest between consenting adults is being questioned by some people, particularly those that have distant relationships. Nevertheless, incestuous relationships by fathers against their daughters cannot be justified on any grounds and require an obnoxious and effective laws on an urgent basis to address it.
In fact, several horrific instances of juvenile incest have been reported in Nigeria. It can be recalled in this context that there was an instance where a father was exposed for sexually abusing his daughter for nine years.
Juvenile incest is an ugly reality which is flagrant in our nation. According to Statista, “In 2018, the average prevalence of sexual abuses in Nigeria was of nine percent. In Gombe, the incidence was the highest in the country. According to a survey, 45 percent of individuals living in the state had experienced sexual violence in their life”. In a similar vein, “In 2020, around 5.8 thousand survivors of sexual assault accessed Sexual Assault Referral Centers (SARC) in Nigeria. That year, there were over 11 thousand reported cases of rape, according to the Human Rights Commission”. Inherent and literarily buried in the data provided by Statista are cases of incest.
Recently, cases of girls being victims of juvenile incest as perpetrated by their lecherous fathers are becoming rife. More often than not, they are unable to speak up against their fathers (who are traditionally the breadwinners) so as to preserve the family honor. They suffer in silence while the abuse has serious ramifications on their physical, mental, emotional and psychological health. Criminalization of juvenile incest is imperative to increase awareness about this crime and protect millions of innocent baby girls from undergoing such a traumatic experience.
