By Alex Digi
Officials from the national Ministry of Gender, Child and Social Welfare in conjunction with some MPs from the Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA) arrived in Yambio Tuesday on a mission to assess Gender Base violence cases in the state.
Speaking to reporters in Yambio after their arrival, the team leader Hon. Jackline Mathew Gaza said they came as a team from TNLA and the Ministry of Gender to assess the Protection Units in Police, the safe House and the judiciary system on the case of GBV in the state.
Gaza said the team will also collect data on whether the police and safe houses are operating in all the counties of the state.
“Our visit to the state is short and brief, we would like to know the work of the protection units within each police station in all the ten counties, and we would like to know also understand the judiciary system of how it handle the GBV cases and if there prosecution going on at state level how is it handle and we also planned to visit the safe home of GBV here in the state and to also understand if we have other safe homes in all other ten counties within the state” she explained the mission.
Lawmaker Gaza said as a National MP she was delegated to lead the Gender ministry delegation to Western Equatoria State by the minister who happened to have had what she described as a last minute health concern preventing her from embarking on the mission.
Gaza stated that the data collection on the cases of GBV is very important to help the Ministry plan the strategies on how the GBV cases can be handled.
She said it is not only happening in Western Equatoria State but the data collection will be carried out across all the ten States and three Administrative Areas
Meanwhile the Governor of Western Equatoria State Gen. Alfred Futuyo Karaba welcomed the team in the state and assured them of security of the state.
He urged the delegates to feel free to do their work without any security fear till they return.
The team who embarked on the mission comprised of lawmakers; Hon. Jackline Mathew Gaza, Hon. Victoria Benjamin and Technical Personal in the Ministry of Gender, Child and Social welfare, Joyce Phillip.
According to the team the exercise was expected to last for two days.