Ministry of Justice Bauchi, ATBU, UNFPA Charge Students to Report Campus GBV

Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi

The Bauchi State Ministry of Justice has charged students in tertiary institutions to discountenance the tradition of silence and report all instances of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) on their campuses.
The charge was delivered by the Solicitor General and Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Sabiu Adamu Gumba, during a one-day sensitization campaign held at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi.
The event was organised by the ministry, in collaboration with ATBU’s Faculty of Environmental Technology and supported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
The campaign focused on educating the university community about the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Law and other legal frameworks protecting citizens from campus-based violence.
Gumba, who was represented by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), clarified that while the ministry is fully committed to eradicating GBV, it must also uphold constitutional rights.
He emphasized that the ministry will continue to protect the human rights of everyone involved including the accused – until they are proven guilty by a court of competent jurisdiction.
“The VAPP law was passed in 2022 to cover specific offenses including intimidation, assault, rape, and cybercrime, which severely impact women, children, and vulnerable groups.These offenses attract severe punishments when a suspect is found guilty” Gumba stated.
He admonished students against trading sex for grades, personal favors, or due to intimidation, noting that silence only emboldens perpetrators.
“We are here to advise you, the management, and both academic and non-academic staff to speak up whenever an incident occurs. Your silence does not protect the offender; it encourages them. Speak out and expose them to protect yourselves and other innocent people,” the Solicitor General added.
Welcoming the initiative, the Dean of the Faculty of Environmental Technology, Prof. Adamu Babayo, admitted that conversations around GBV have exposed deep-seated issues regarding harmful actions and gender norms within the institution.
“We realized that we have been propagating issues amongst ourselves as staff and students without fully understanding the legal consequences of our actions,” Prof. Babayo said.
To maximize the impact of the training, the faculty selected two student representatives per department across 100 to 500 level alongside faculty staff.
Babayo expressed optimism that the participants would act as ambassadors to cascade the anti-GBV message to their peers and homes, reminding attendees that GBV is a cross-cutting issue.
“Gender-based violence goes both ways. Do not assume that because it is labeled ‘gender,’ only females are affected. Male partners can also be victims,” he stated.
Civil society also joined the call for absolute transparency. Speaking at the event, the Executive Director of the Journalists for Public Health and Development Initiative (J4PD), Elizabeth Carr, warned against covering up abuses.
Represented by Bulak Afsa, Carr promised that journalists across the state will deploy professional reporting to expose campus GBV, protect the dignity of victims, and create a powerful deterrent against offenders.
The programme also received goodwill messages from the state Ministry of Budget, Economic Planning and Multilateral Coordination, as well as the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare. Both ministries lauded the timely sensitization drive, describing it as a major milestone in cleansing tertiary institutions of gender-sensitive violations.

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