By Osakhare Erese, Asaba
The Police Detectives attached to the anti-human trafficking at the Delta State Police Command have arrested eight human traffickers mainly women, and rescued five children in the early hours of Monday in Asaba.
Confirming the arrest of the suspects, and the children rescued, the police commissioner in the state, Mustafa Muhammed told our reporter: “the police acted on intelligence reports to swoop on the suspects behind NTA Asaba where the suspects were about trafficking the children between 6, 5, 7, 6 and 7 years old out of the state the police detectives arrested them, and they are currently being detained for further investigation” adding that the suspects will be charged to court on completion of investigation.
Meanwhile the State Commissioner for Women Affairs, Mrs. Omatshola Williams has said that her ministry last Friday rescued a 8-year old boy identified as Lucky Uduren whose mother was allegedly killed in Ugbolu community near Asaba, and the boy was sold for N400, 000, adding that three women were and had since been handed over to the police for prosecution.
The Commissioner who spoke to our reporter in an interview said: “the Ministry of Women Affairs in the State is doing a lot, and just this morning (Monday) we rescued a child that was dumped inside the put by a neighbour in Asaba, and we were able to trace the mother, and the police are investigating the act”.
On bounties for multiple birth, the Commissioner disclosed and under the period of three years reviewed, thirty five applications were received from families with multiple births, out of which eighteen families benefited while the remaining seventeen applications have been processed, and are expected for benefit this year 2018.
She said that 300 orphans/vulnerable children have trained by the state government in income generating activities as a way to eke for themselves a living, adding that the state government had out of 52 applications for orphanage homes, approved 32 homes while 3, 500 illegal orphanage homes were uncovered.
On adoption, the Commissioner said: “a total of 693 applications were received during the period under review out of which 136 children were released from different approved orphanages to prospective adoptive parents while the remaining applications are at various staged of the adoption process”.
