The Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, on Thursday, announced scholarships and gave various gift items to 100 orphaned girls in Niger State, ahead of their mass wedding today (Friday).
The mass wedding is being sponsored by the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Abdulmalik Sarkindaji.
The minister had kicked against the mass wedding of the young girls, saying it was a violation of the Child Rights Act.
Kennedy-Ohanenye, who addressed a press conference in Abuja, noted that she had petitioned the Inspector General of Police to stop the wedding, adding that she also filed a lawsuit, seeking an injunction to restrain the Speaker from going ahead with the mass wedding.
In response, the Speaker lambasted the minister for dabbling into a religious and cultural issue she did not understand.
He said the minister acted without first making any effort to understand the circumstances that confronted the girls, which made it necessary for their weddings to be sponsored.
The Speaker also received the backing of the Niger State Council of Imams and the Muslim Rights Concern, which both warned the minister to steer clear of the mass wedding, which they insisted must go on as scheduled.