WHEN the National Agency for Prohibition of Traffic in Persons (NAPTIP) was created, Nigerians heaved a sigh of relief that at last the monster, which is the inhuman trade in persons, would be combated, but recent revelations have proved that succour is not in sight, not even with the activities of NAPTIP officials in the South Eastern part of the country.The agency, which began operation in 2009, according to it, has helped in combating human traffic in various forms. However, Nigerian Tribune learnt that of late, the activities of the agency are being questioned folllowing allegations of malpractices.It has been alleged that NAPTIP officials, in collaboration with the men of the Nigerian Police, have devised means of extorting money from proprietors of orphanages in Anambra State. Nigerian Tribune learnt that these officials send text messages to these centres, demanding various amounts of money, running into millions of naira. The charging rate, it was gathered, is based on the size of the orphanage and failure to comply, attract dire consequences.It was also alleged that most of the homes which have resisted to comply with their demands were raided with heavily armed policemen and the inmates and workers arrested. Such homes are then labelled as baby factories and closed down.One of such homes that was recently raided by NAPTIP officials is the Christian Compassionate home, Obosi in Idemili North Local Government Area, where the workers were mercilessly beaten up and 19 children between the ages of one and three years were whisked away and detained in an unknown location. The affected operators accused the NAPTIP officials of losing focus from its set objectives.Recalling her experience, the Matron of Christian Compassionate Home, Chika Goodness, said that the raiding of the home by NAPTIP has remained a nightmare and was uncalled for. She said 'they labelled the home a baby factory and took away all the inmates including my two children and the children of some of the workers. 'What baffles me most is that the home is duly registered with all relevant authorities, including the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and the Ministry of Women Affairs in Anambra State, which is the supervising ministry. We have been operating within the guidelines of the ministry, we don't give out the babies for adoption, because it is the exclusive right of the ministry.'Nigerian Tribune gathered that whenever the NAPTIP officials invaded these homes and whisked away the inmates, who were mostly minors, they demanded huge amount of money from the embattled owners who fought desperately to evade grievous allegations brought against them. Upon inquiry, Goodness added that the officials of NAPTIP who came for the raid disclosed that they raided the home on a tip off that the home engages in children trafficking and other illegal activities.Describing the allegations as malicious and ill conceived, the embattled matron said that she did not establish the organisation as a money spinning venture, but as a fulfillment of a burning passion to give succour to the underprivileged who were abandoned to cruel fate.Corroborating her claims, her husband and the chairman, Board of Trustees (BOT) of the home, Reverend Maxwell Ogazi, disclosed that before their ordeal, he received a call from a hidden phone number asking him to pay N1million or forfeit the orphanage and face the attendant consequences.Ogazi said that he called the bluff of the anonymous caller. He said, 'I told the anonymous caller that I don't have any money to give to anybody to be allowed to run an orphanage, after all, it is not a profit oriented organisation. The next thing I saw was my picture in one of the national magazines with the allegation that I ran a baby factory where children are sold.'My worry is that NAPTIP should have thoroughly investigated the allegations before storming the home in the manner they did and to think that they are still keeping the children they arrested from the home despite their failing health is totally condemnable. If we are found culpable in any of the allegations, then, they should go ahead and prosecute us instead of holding onto the innocent minors unjustly,' Ogazi argued.One of the mothers of the detained minors, a 25-year old widow, whose two children were arrested, Patience Jacob, said she had been denied access to the children since.Speaking with the Nigerian Tribune during a protest by the aggrieved mothers, she said some of the children whisked away by NAPTIP during the raid were not inmates but children of the staff of the home. She alleged that the kind of money the agency was demanding for the release of the children was mind blowing.'Efforts to secure the release of the children have been abortive as NAPTIP continues to play hide and seek. They have denied us access to our children, even when we have showed all evidence to prove that we are their mothers. I am a widow and my children are very young. My appeal is that they should release my children to me.'I have been working here since last year and I have never noticed any illegal activity here as alleged by NAPTIP.But if they have facts, let them investigate and make it open but they should release our children to us,' she lamented.Condemning the activities of NAPTIP officials in Anambra State, a human rights lawyer who craved anonymity, said that it was a new dimension in corruption among security outfits in the country.According to him, 'for these officials to target vulnerable orphanages for the sole aim of extorting money from the proprietors is alarming and will discourage public spirited Nigerians from engaging in philanthropic activities. Everyday, hundreds of Nigerian teenagers are illegally crossed through our porous borders to engage in modern slavery in other countries while NAPTIP officials are busy witch-hunting operators of orphanages. It shows the level of decay in the system.'Another victim, Ifeoma Okolo, the proprietor of the Divine Mercy Motherless Babies Home, also in Obosi, narrated how officials from Anambra state Ministry of Women Affairs stormed her home and took away the inmates and some of the staff.Narrating her ordeal on her hospital bed, Okolo, disclosed that her problem began after she refused to 'settle' one of the officials of the ministry who insisted on being given a substantial amount of money monthly or be allowed to take some children monthly for his private purposes. She also added that the officer in question had invaded the home some time last year and allegedly took away two children.Okolo said that he vowed that he would never live and see her motherless babies home progress unless she agreed to give him returns or give him children to sell but she refused. I know that he is selling children and the Social Welfare Department is aware of this. I can prove this anywhere even if he wants us to go to any level, I will prove it,' she said.On the allegation that she sold one miracle baby for N400, 000, Okolo said it was a cooked up story and a ploy to bring her name to disrepute and paint the orphanage in bad light to pave way for their plan to shut down the home.'They said I sold Miracle for N400, 000 but let me ask you, how can one sell her own son' Miracle is my only surviving child after I gave birth to three sets of twins, so you can see. He is my own son, no sane person will sell her only son for money after giving birth to three sets of twins, all boys, five of them died and Miracle survived, which was why I gave him the name, Miracle' she said.Meanwhile when contacted, the Director for Child Development, Anambra State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, Mr. Emeka Ejide, denied the allegations, saying that the Ministry raided the home because of its illegal activities.Mr. Ejide also said that he did not take the two children as alleged by Mrs. Okolo, stressing that the ministry was in custody of all the children recovered from illegal orphanage homes across the state.'I am happy that it is coming from the press, incidentally, there is no home with the name Divine Mercy Motherless Babies Home. What the woman had was a slaughter house, the detectives from Nigeria Police went there and rescued the children hidden under a bed in a warehouse and I can tell you that the children are in the custody of the ministry.'Mr. Ejide also noted that the allegation was aimed at tarnishing the image of the Ministry by those he described as illegal owners of orphanage homes in the state, adding that, it was simply blackmail which he said was targeted at undermining the resolve of the ministry to rid the state of illegal operators of motherless babies homes.'It is just a simple blackmail. But we shall not succumb to it because the homes we raided are all illegal homes and the woman who was alleging that we took two children away, I have never met her in person but all I can tell you is that the children rescued from homes like hers are in the custody of the ministry,' Ejide said.When contacted, an official of NAPTIP, who did not want his name in print, said that the raid was not ill motivated but a necessary measure to sanitise orphanages in Anambra State which he said had fallen below approved standard.When contacted, Anambra State Commissioner for Women Affairs, Ego Uzoezie, refused to comment on the issue.
Click here to read full news..
