Aregbesola Signs Executive Bill On Youth, Women Empowerment

Governor, State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola has signed an Executive Bill focusing on key areas of Youth, Women and other areas of addressing issues concerning the welfare of the vulnerable and less privileged in the state.

The bill is to also institutionalize efforts of the government under its Social Investment Programme.

The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in the State of Osun, Dr Ajibola Basiru disclosed this at the Start-Up Meeting on Building a Pro-Bono Culture in Nigeria facilitated by the Justice Research Institute, Nigeria Bar Association and the State Ministry of Justice.

The meeting held in Osogbo, the state capital seeks to bring together stakeholders from various arms of the Pro-Bono Initiative on the War against Sexual and Gender Based Violence with a view to providing free legal services in the prosecution of vulnerable victims cases in Osun.

Basiru stated that the programme is key due to the vulnerability and susceptibility of the society to Gender-based Violence called on all stakeholders to ensure Transparency and Accountability in the dispensation of Justice.

In his remarks, the Secretary of the Presidential Advisory Panel on Anti-Corruption, Mr Akingbolahan Adeniran said the initiative is targeted at ensuring sanity in the society in respect to rampant cases of gender-based violence.

Adeniran is of the opinion that if the Pro-Bono Measure is adopted in states of the Nigerian federation, the usage of the Rule of Law to achieve Social Justice.

He however underscored the role of the media in noting the key areas cum ideals to cover in avoiding stigmatization and other societal negligence for victims.

In separate papers, Funmi Owuye, the coordinator of the Lagos Pro-Bono project gave account of the successes achieved so far with emphasis on the need to get the relevant stakeholders to action in the State of Osun.

The programme gave birth to the inauguration of the State of Osun Task Force Public Interest Law Partnership comprising of relevant stakeholders including the State Ministry of Justice, Osun Chapter of the Nigerian Bar Association and the Justice Research Institute by the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Dr Ajibola Basiru.