Plateau commission rescues five children from trafficking to Calabar

The Plateau State Gender and Equal Opportunities Commission, in partnership with security agencies, has rescued five children who were scheduled to be trafficked to Calabar, Cross River State.

Speaking with newsmen, the Commission’s chairperson, Barrister Olivia Dazyam, lamented that human trafficking continues to occur despite awareness programmes put in place to address the menace.

She claimed the children were rescued on Thursday after a tip-off from a good Samaritan, and that as soon as the commission learned of the incident, the commission, the wife of the Bassa local government chairman, and NAPTIP officials jumped into action to save the children.

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Dazyam, who said the law is clear that child trafficking is a serious offence, called on the people of Plateau State to unite and say no to the atrocity of child trafficking.

“Virtually all our local governments have perpetrators, and we must work together to fish them out,” she said.

The Commission has appealed to local governments, especially those considered hot spots, to cooperate in the fight against human trafficking.

Dazyam commended the wife of the chairman of the Bassa local government area, Mrs Miriam Roti, for her prompt response to the situation, adding that

The investigation is ongoing, while the suspects are expected to provide more information on the trafficking network.

Dazyam urged parents to follow due process when adopting or relocating children, saying, “Poverty is not an excuse for releasing your child to somebody you don’t know.”

Mrs Miriam Riti, wife of the Chairman of the Bassa Local Government of the State, while reacting to the incident, said, “I got a call concerning the trafficking of some children from my local government. So I came to the gender commission.

“It’s really, really disheartening that in Bassa local government, this kind of case keeps reoccurring, despite the awareness campaign, the effort, and the little empowerment we give to the parents to enable them to do something so that they can make a little sacrifice for their children.