Clerics decry rising cases of incest

Two Lagos-based clerics have expressed concern over the rising cases of incest, particularly fathers having sexual intercourse with their underage daughters.

Pastor Peter Ayeni of Victory of God Mission, Ayobo-Ipaja, who quoted various scriptures to explain his point, described incest as an abominable act in the sight of God.

“Incest is not only immoral and illegal but it is an abomination unto God which should not be mentioned or heard of,”‘ he said

He said that there were cases where some fathers even impregnated their daughters.

The victims, he said, may be left damaged mentally and emotionally throughout their lives.

According to him, a man who sleeps with his daughter is cursed; he needs deliverance to be healed and forgiveness of sins to be free.

He urged mothers to speak up and stop covering up for husbands who raped their daughters just because they want to save their marriage.

“Some mothers will not want to expose their husbands, they will tell their children to keep quiet due to the stigma attached to it,” he said.

The pastor urged mothers to educate their children about sex so that they would not be exposed to wrong counselling.

“Be close to your children, don’t be shy to talk to them about sex and everything, it will help them and they too must be free to talk to you about everything,” he said.

Ayeni called for the strengthening of the law against sex offenders, to discourage such acts.

He cited loneliness, divorce, sex starve, depression, alcoholism, uncontrollable sex drives, drug addiction among others as factors that could be responsible for such act.

In the same vein, an Islamic cleric, Mr Mukaila Lawal, condemned the act, saying that it was against the teachings of Islam.

“The act is disgusting, Islam forbids it, Allah made it clear in many verses in the Holy Qur’an.

“What would attract a man to have sex with his minor or teenage daughter? Such father needs psychiatric examinations as no sane man should engage in such,” he said.

Lawal said that those caught in such acts should be arrested and prosecuted to serve as deterrent to others.

He advised mothers to ensure that their daughters dressed moderately at home because men become destabilised when they see what they should not see.

The cleric appealed to fathers to have self-control over their emotions. (NAN)