The Favoured Wordsmith- to the Glory of God
With ‘The Venerable Favoured Ones,
Stands to examine and to tell
The truth as always against hell
With the courage to say all is well
Amidst peace and rift in a risk to tell
The truth. As it is certain, Yahweh is the Shell
That shields me impenetrably, till I hear the bell
To come home-Heaven, Amen. And never hell.


CHILD MARRIAGE: A HIDEOUS CRIME TO HUMANITY

Oliver Gold Smith said, ‘Law grinds the poor and rich men rule the law’. That is the case in Nigeria. Education is progressing to a level at which it becomes a game exclusive for the rich and robbers. As if evil is pleasant, as if the people pray for pain and poverty, a greater burden and evil is being introduced, to drain and dry the value of the poor.
Child Marriage, basically for underage girls, is a baseless issue which overtly opines that the essence of the existence of the female folk is to be used and overused or misused by the male folk at will.

Nigeria: do or die politics; Jumbo Pay; Unnecessary Political Offices; Intermittent Power Supply for which people pay for services not enjoyed; Several Strikes, on and on (ASUP, ASSU, NLC, TUC, NUT, PENGASSAN, Doctors and so on); Plane Crash; several Bombing and Deaths; Unfinished Cases with EFCC; Fuel Subsidy Removal with Revelation without essence; Looting with Impunity; and several depressing socio-political issues- for which committee stand in vain to gain; are the hard facts about the country, Nigeria.

This time, it is Child Marriage, aside gay marriage issue, that is been bitterly discussed here and there, now and then. And the government seems unconcerned about the people’s responses and reactions. There are cases, time and again that show the great failure of democracy in Nigeria. Laws are made by few for few who never care for people but for self and for maintenance of bad status quo. Female has been particularly hard hit by almost all laws of a blind patriarchal society, the men make laws that care not or care less about the female:
Against child marriage we cry
But they think they are too high
To hear our voice and cry
But they Aren’t taller than the sky
That glorifies our madrigals
We will not stop to cry
Nature will hear us
The Celestial we fight for us
They will become sane
Or perish in shame and pain

If we allow child marriage, will fathers support a 14 year old boy who decides to marry? Never! Child Marriage is not a complete or sufficient description of the matter. It is female child-Male Adult marriage. It is not as if a child will marry a child. But against her will, or in accordance with a forced- feigned will, a girl will marry a man old enough to be a father or grandfather or a young man as the case may be. And then she must endure the pain of congress without complaint. Imagine a fresh burrow being thrust by an elephant; it certainly is an act against nature. And yet, her ignorance will be so exploited such that she will helplessly flattened in silent groaning. Despite elasticity, some ripe enough for eating, except or until when the feeling is properly or adequately stimulated, do experience pain- when touched.

The poor must think. Their boys will work hard and hard and fade in time. Their girls will marry and get over used and over-milked till they fade away especially when their haunch and breast become uninvitingly flattened. The rich will educate their children-boys and girls. And the result is: the posterity of the rich will rule continuously over the poor. John F. Kennedy said, ‘A child mis-educated is a child lost'. And we must know that a child lost is a generation lost. Child marriage- a girl marries an old man and the man imprisons her. He used her for his comfort. The poor girl bleeds.
Poor girl bleeds.
Her pain’s ne’er relieved by the brunch
I wonder if our cries can stop the staunch
The evil ne’er consider her comfort
They feel good to force her into his fort
Where her cheeks, lips and teeth will ne’er smile
For she is at the bottom of the pile
And her breast and Haunch will waste
And her milk will waste
And her beauties pile to join the pile
Of queens that form the fort stile
And she zooms past on her fate
And wears out and old before her date
And her totality is rendered ashes and non-entity
Apart from the pleasure she gives the wicked entity

It is irritating that despite hard facts about the evils of child marriage, such as hard evidences of medical implication, many of the people’s representatives prefer to allow child abuse, female oppression, female abuse, in term of child or early marriage.
There are several cases of Vesico Virginal Fistula (VVF) in Nigeria.
Nigeria is said to record the highest cases of VVF in the world. The minister of Women affair and Social Development, Hajiya Zainab Maina revealed that Nigeria has the highest cases of VVF in the world with an ‘estimated’ 400, 000 to 800,000 cases of which 20,000 cases added annually.

According to Wikipedia, VVF is an abnormal fistulous tract extending between the bladder and the virginal that allows the continuous involuntary discharge of urine into the virginal vault. It can result from prolong child labour or violet rape. Fistula is said to be a term for abnormal connection between two bodily organs. Obsteric fistula either Vesico virginal fistula or rector virginal fistula is dangerous, shameful, painful and perhaps deadly.

Although, only the victims, their close people, medical experts and some learned may have enough understanding of the disease, VVF, we all most know that since it has to do with the virginal it is very critical and worth avoiding, controlling , or curing, as possible.

Why then, Should some people fail to consider the well being of the young girl and risk their health by making them liable to becoming victims of VVF? No good reasons for this other than selfishness, Wickedness and heartlessness. Even in slavery, this was extremely unpleasant, infact, not practiced, and only in slavery can people be treated against their comfort, according to the owner’s wish. Children are not commodities, they are not disposable valueless-valuables, but assets worth protecting no matter their sex.

Nevertheless, if we base this issue on sex, I think children now, do become ‘baby mothers’. Before 18, many doors are broken, many treasure are stolen, many valuables are washed or burnt off by employing culture or science, quack or expert, and many lives are wasted even among the civilized ones who even think that ‘Play safe’ is more pleasant to say than ‘Abstinence is the best’ or ‘Abstain till then’. Many underage now taste sex, I care not to say enjoy sex, because pleasure is not the same as joy or happiness. Many or some have children while they (the new mothers) are still children. So, let not the pot call the kettle black.
So therefore, the fact is that marriage is beyond sex and child bearing, it’s a commitment and a responsibility. It is a union of mature and compatible minds-Adult and not babies, not teens, not girls, but for women (A man with a woman) for the joy and comfort and peace of both partners.

Child Marriage affects mostly the female (and the poverty stricken frustrated parents). So it is still an aspect of the mny evils of ‘a blind patriarchy system’ which still sees female as a property just for man comfort. But none so deaf as those who will never hear. And forbidden fruit tastes sweetest especially to the tongue of the greedy.
The case of Nigeria is critical
For there may be accident so fatal
For she is being driven by the willful deaf
Write, speak, shout and cry to the ears of the deaf
And if voices and songs catch no attention
Tapping, touching, pulling, and pushing will be the resolution
Soon, soon and so soon
Nature will proffer solution very soon.

The Bible says ‘Children are the heritage from God’ (Psalm127:3) and happy is the man who has his quiver full of them (Psalm 127:5). Proverb 22:6 command parent to trained their children in the way they should go and when they are old they will not depart from it.
Apart from Miriam, a prophetess, Deborah, a prophetess, (and reasonably, a warrior), Huldah, a prophetess, Anah, a prophetess, Phoebe, a Deaconess, there was Rhoda or Dorcas who was so caring in her time and influenced many lives. She was valuable beyond the kitchen. Yet we can say that Abishag was very young when brought to David the king. She was not a girl but a maiden, the kind that can be married and yet the king did nothing with her.

Child Marriage is a crime to humanity. I refuse to discuss this issue as if we are copying the western world or the so civilized and pestering world. For if we reject child marriage because they did, rather than because of the evil there in, we might as well have to accept day marriage. So it is not as if their system is the best. Our refusal of child married is not just because some other worlds refuse it but because of the evil in it. Evil is evil. Child marriage is evil and nothing but evil.
If we discuss the issue according to custom or culture of some people and conclude that it must be allowed, why did we not allow human sacrifice even though it used to be part of the custom of some people.
Many Nigerians have spoken against child marriage for example Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin said that the resolution on child marriage violated decency. If a region doesn’t want to change and accommodate peace of all and comfort for all, then why do we stick to federal system of government and not confederal system of government? Most women who support this act do so because they are (made to be) inure to the system and intellectually weakened or oppressed by the selfish rich men of their society. Child marriage is a crime to childhood, womanhood and humanity. It is not as if the marriable or the mature are finished or scarce, it is not as if the underage will not attain the proper age so what is the essence of child marriage?

KUYE SAMUEL O.
KSOOAN HOPEACE- TO THE GLORY OF GOD