In her speech at the occasion, Mrs Umahi described female genital mutilation as a harmful traditional practice against womanhood which must be put to an end.
She said: “We can’t continue to live in dark ages at the detriment of our women in the name of female circumcision or genital mutilation.
“Our women have suffered a lot in this traditional harmful practices against them and we must stop it, we must wage serious war against the practice.
“A situation where women reproductive organs are butchered in the name cultural practices is no longer unacceptable,’’ she vowed.
She noted that the state ranks second with 74% after Osun state as states in the country with prevalent rate of female genital mutilation, leading to her decision to begin the campaign against the practice through her pet project, Family Succour and Upliftment Programme.
Mrs. Umahi said she will soon approach the state house of Assembly to amend the law against the practice which is yet to be passed.
Earlier, the state Chief Judge Justice Alloy Nwankwo who was represented on the occasion by Justice Destina Oko of Onueke High Court said anyone caught practicing the act in the state will bag five years imprisonment with option of N2, 000 fines.
She reiterated the readiness of the judiciary to partner with Mrs. Umahi to curb female circumcision in the state.
In his remarks, Governor Umahi said he will retrieve a law before the state House of Assembly against female genital mutilation which has not been passed and emend it to provide severe sanctions against the mutilators.
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