Two children for N300,000!

IN his day, according to the Holy Bible, Judas Iscariot, one of the 12 apostles of Jesus Christ, sold him to the Jewish political leadership for 30 pieces of silver. The treasurer of the 12, Judas was daringly dishonest with his gifts, and always had his eyes on money rather than miracles. The story is old, but a similarly dark, bizarre incident happened recently in Nigeria’s Ogun State where Mrs Blessing Ebuneku Agoro, a 35-year-old mother of four, reportedly played Iscariot with two of her biological brood, Semilore Agoro (four years) and Deborah Agoro (two years), citing lack of spousal care. The price: N300,000.

Blessing was said to have carried out the treacherous transaction without the knowledge of her husband, Oluwaseyi Agoro, who brought the matter to the attention of the police. According to the State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Abimbola Oyeyemi, Agoro reported at the Redemption Camp Divisional Headquarters that he had been away for some time and returned on Tuesday only to find his two daughters absent. Efforts to make his wife tell him the whereabouts of the girls yielded no result.

Oyeyemi said: “Upon the report, the DPO of the Redemption Camp Division, CSP Alabi Akinjide, detailed his detectives to apprehend the suspect, who was already with the camp’s Code of Conduct department. On interrogation, the suspect explained that her husband had left home for the past two years and that while he was away, she found it difficult to cater for the two children, with the other two children she had for another man.” And so while she weighed what to do, one Kolawole Imoleayo introduced her to a Port Harcourt, Rivers State-based couple who, she said, were in dire need of children. Imoleayo and Blessing are currently both assisting the police in their investigations.
While directing that the suspects be moved to the anti-human trafficking and child labour unit of the state CID, the

Ogun Commissioner of Police, Mr. Edward Ajogun, said the girls must be rescued and brought back to their parents as soon as possible. That, indeed, is a task that must be done with dispatch. It must be approached with utmost professionalism. It is indeed distressing that a mother, any mother, would seek to dispose of her own biological children in exchange for filthy lucre. Whatever deprivations Mrs Agoro faced, selling off innocent children placed in her care as a matter of right was certainly no solution. It is hard to imagine what has happened to the little children thrust upon the harsh realities of life at such an innocent age. But the husband who was away for two years also has questions to answer. Without holding brief for a despicable mother, we wonder how a supposed father would abandon his responsibilities for two years. During all the time that he was away, what arrangements did the complainant in this case make for the children’s upkeep? He certainly has a lot to account for under the Child Rights Act.

If this story illustrates anything, it is the continuing loss of values in the Nigerian society, a theme that has consistently engaged our attention. It is a dizzying and disturbing point, but it must be acknowledged nonetheless: increasingly, what counts nowadays is the money to be made and not the legality or propriety of the process of making the money. And the fact that some persons were willing and ready to partake in the illegal business of buying daughters shows the level of depravity in the entire society. The government had better go beyond punishing all those involved in this despicable and inhuman transaction. It has a bounden duty to help put in place efforts and structures to address the value gaps in the society and ensure that Nigerians start to shelve their disdain for values. The place of values and principles in living a worthy life is eternally assured.

In case they need any reminding, state governments ought to have properly equipped and functioning welfare departments. They cannot always hope to get by with trifles.

YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE

We Have Not Had Water Supply In Months ― Abeokuta Residents

In spite of the huge investment in the water sector by the government and international organisations, water scarcity has grown to become a perennial nightmare for residents of Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital. This report x-rays the lives and experiences of residents in getting clean, potable and affordable water amidst the surge of COVID-19 cases in the state…Two children  Two children

Selfies, video calls and Chinese documentaries: The things you’ll meet onboard Lagos-Ibadan train

The Lagos-Ibadan railway was inaugurated recently for a full paid operation by the Nigerian Railway Corporation after about a year of free test-run. Our reporter joined the train to and fro Lagos from Ibadan and tells his experience in this report…Two children  Two children