The Minister of Gender and Social Welfare Doreen Sioka feels targeted by Namibians, calling on her to step down from her portfolio, saying fighting sexual gender-based violence (SGBV) is not a one-man show. The minister made these comments during an interview with NAMPA on Tuesday outside the National Assembly chambers, shortly after the opening of the third session of the seventh parliament. Due to the unprecedented rise in SGBV cases, wanton abuse of women and children, certain quarters have called on Sioka to resign, citing her alleged incompetence to handle the ministry. In her own defence, Sioka said those calling for her resignation have selective morality as she is not the only one involved in making laws. “That selective morality. I don’t like it. Targeting only Doreen and laws are not made by Doreen alone. Amendments to the laws are already with the Justice Minister. Why should the blame come to me? I have already informed the Minister of Justice and the laws are coming to be amended. Why moral selectivity?” Sioka said. The Ministry of Justice is expected to table a number of bills, among them the Combating of Rape Amendment Bill, Combating of Domestic Violence Amendment Bill and the Criminal Procedure Amendment Bill. On the same day President Hage Geingob, who officially opened Parliament, said he is pleased to note that the Combating of Rape Amendment Bill and the Combating of Domestic Violence Amendment Bill include appropriate penalties that not only demonstrate that Government takes the offence of rape seriously, but also that has the resolve to deter offenders from committing these heinous crimes. “A nation that cannot guarantee the safety of its women and children is a nation which can never ascend to the lofty heights of prosperity. Crimes that are aimed at women and children, often in the most brutal fashion, have become persistent in our society, with devastating consequences. This cannot be tolerated,” Geingob said. Geingob said as part of the construction plan for the Namibian house, the Government wants to build a nation where citizens, irrespective of their age, race, and gender, feel loved, secure and happy in their homes and communities. He said it is therefore of utmost importance that the integrity of Namibia is guaranteed by laws that deter and prevent behaviours and conditions that place the lives of the most vulnerable members of our community under threat. -NAMPA