I Would Have Celebrated

Stella Damasus

Stella Damasus

As most of you already know Yinka Lawanson a.k.a Lamboghinny and I, were made NDLEA ( National Drug Law Enforcement Agency) ambassadors on 10 December 2012 at the agency’s headquarters in Lagos State, southwest Nigeria. It was such a humbling experience for me as I began to appreciate the amount of work that this agency has put in, despite the challenges they have been facing.

From what I saw there, it was obvious that they are understaffed and underfunded. This really hurt me because when I was walking in I saw loads of pictures of members of their staff who had died in the course of their drug busts. It is indeed a risky and sensitive job.

I was honoured because this is the first time in history that the agency is involved this kind of partnership, but at the same time, I was hoping and praying that in the one year tenure we have been given, we can make the kind of impact that is expected of us. The work is much but I believe that with God on our side and with dedication plus your prayers and support, we can help save the lives of future generations.

I was going to celebrate this as soon as I got back to Abuja but that excitement was shaky because of the report and the pictures I got the following day. It was a story on an artist known as Tiwa Banks, who was badly beaten and battered with broken bottles by her landlord’s son. The pictures were so heart-wrenching that I immediately started making enquiries.

I am sick and tired of the violation of the rights of women and young girls in this country. I am sick and tired of the fact that the so-called human rights activists run away from issues concerning the Nigerian woman. I am sick and tired of the fact that a lot of these stories are being swept under the carpet. I am sick and tired of the fact that this is happening everyday and increasing in number because there is no justice.

I am sick and tired of worrying about my mum, sisters, daughters and friends because anything can happen to them at any ime and no one will speak up for them because it did not affect them directly. I am sick and tired of begging and asking my fellow women and artists who have voices to speak up but most times, they turn around and laugh at me. I am sick and tired of the fact that apart from people like Weird MC, Kate Henshaw, Funke Kuti, Madam Saint Matthew Daniels, Dorothy Njemanze, Josephine Effah Chukwumah and some radio presenters; other prominent women act like they don’t care.

I am sick and tired of the fact that we have female commissioners, ministers, church leaders, celebrities, lawyers, activists and yet it seems like nothing is being done about it. I am sick and tired of the fact that reports are made and the country seems to move only when something happens to the family member of a prominent and rich person.

I just read a report from Kenya where a man killed his wife, ate her liver and forced their three-year old to drink her blood. The story is available on the internet.

Related News

Nigeria is already at that point, so if you are still living in denial, thinking that it can never happen here, then please enjoy the pictures you will see soon.

Most of the people who commit these crimes were not born as monsters, eighty per cent of the time they are under the influence of drugs which makes them act without conscience.

I am very worried about this generation and where we are heading to, especially because we live in a country where nobody cares about the security and safety of  women, but when the time for election comes we will all be expected to campaign and vote for them to come into power. Wow! Isn’t that funny?

As I celebrate this great partnership with NDLEA, I am also  pleading that we all stand up and fight against this violence, it sounds like a minor issue to people because it does not affect them directly.

Send me emails please and let me have your contributions, suggestions and advice as regards methods we  can employ to make our voices heard.

Women cannot continue to be butchered and destroyed, we cannot continue to beg for protection in our own country, we cannot continue to look over our shoulders when we come out of our houses, we cannot continue to live in fear, we cannot continue to be silenced when we want to speak out and we cannot continue to die like chickens everyday.  I refuse and so should you.

Quote: empower a woman 

Load more