Imo: Foundation battles bizarre child abuse

*•Labourers drug, defile 13-yr old, dump her in hospital; Guardian damages 5-yr old girl’s genitals •Another guardian in jail for child abuse *

**By Emmanuel Iheaka **

For human rights group, Stand for Humanity Foundation, it appears an endless war against child abuse in Imo. The harder the organisation fights, the more children in the state are subjected to various forms of abuse by parents and guardians.

When Anezi Okoro did his children’s literary gem, “One Week, One Trouble”, he might not have envisaged a time when kids in Imo State would not just face one trouble per week, but many of them.

Unlike Wilson Tagbo of the “One Week, One Trouble” who could be said to have, of his own volition, walked into troubles weekly; today troubles rather come looking for children in Imo.

In the past few months, there have been more than 20 reported cases of various forms of child abuse in the state, ranging from battery, maltreatment to defilement.

Guardian damages five-year old girl’s genitals

Among them is that of a five-year old girl who had her genitals allegedly burnt by candle and fingers dipped in boiled water by her guardian, one Juliet Igwe , in Osina, Ideato North Local Government Area. Juliet has remained at the Owerri Correctional Centre, while under trial. She had reportedly accused the kid of stealing a piece of meat from her pot of soup. By the time the toddler was rushed to the hospital by the foundation, some of her fingers were said to have been damaged beyond redemption.

Arraigned before a magistrate court, and subsequently remanded in prison custody, the accused, Igwe, broken down in tears and claimed she didn’t know the kid would be seriously injured by her action.

Imo government enraged by the incident

It was an incident that drew the ire of the state government which preferred attempted murder charges against the 38-year old woman.

Counsel for the state government, Fidelis Igbo, had announced before Chief Magistrate B. U. Ukadike that government had filed attempted murder charges against Igwe at Urualla High Court, owing to the gravity of the offence. The magistrate court consequently struck out the matter. The case is still pending before the high court.

The state Commissioner for Women Affairs and Vulnerable Group, Lady Nkechi Ugwu, who was in court in one of the sessions, condemned the attack and warned that the state government would never condone such. But rather than abate, the attacks keep intensifying.

Aunt jailed for six months

The foundation was able to secure what could be regarded as its first conviction in the war against child abuse, on October 2, 2026, following the sentencing of one Rose Okon to six months in prison for inflicting serious injuries on her 14-year old niece for failing to run an errand as expected. Okon decided to save the court’s time by pleading guilty to the charge.

The court, however gave the convict an option of fine of Fifty Thousand Naira (N50,000), a provision many believed didn’t do justice to the enormity of the offence.

Labourers drug, defile 13-year old girl

About a month ago, there was a report of two labourers drugging and taking turns to defile a 13-year old girl in Ikeduru area of the state. Leader of the foundation, Chidiebube Okeoma, who got the police to arrest the suspects, told journalists that the labourers took the victim to a hospital where a surgery was performed on her without the consent of either her parents or guardian. It was a case that unsettled many residents of the state.

Mum nearly damaged daughter’s eyes

If one had thought that the violent abuses were peculiar to children in the custody of guardians, then the case of a woman who inflicted serious injuries on her daughter’s eyes, proves otherwise. The suspect, a native of Enugu State, but resident at the Egbeada, Mbaitolu council area of Imo State, was said have had the 14-year old child out of wedlock.

It took the intervention of the foundation and good-spirited individuals to restore the sight of the child after series of medical examination and care.

There were many other case of battery against children in the state. In some of the cases, the wife of the state governor, Barr. Chioma Uzodimma, was said to have intervened in providing medical care and shelter to the victims.

Beyond reacting to these incidents of abuse, the foundation has embarked on some proactive measures towards stemming the tide of the assaults. Part of the measures was an enlightenment road walk against child and drug abuse held last month in Owerri, state capital. The Imo State Police Command, Owerri Branch of the Nigeria Bar Association, medical practitioners and the media were part of the campaign.

Speaking at the road walk, the spokesman of the police in the state, DSP Henry Okoye, maintained that the command has zero tolerance for violence against children.

Okoye stated that the police would stop at nothing in prosecuting those who take delight in abusing children.

President of the Stand for Humanity Foundation, Chidiebube Okeoma, called for stiffer punishments for abusers of children, especially cases of child battery, defilements, rapes and all sorts of indignation against children.

Okeoma, also called for a systematic change in the processes of accessing institutional aids for victims and frowned at the society’s snail pace of delivering justice and the bureaucratic bottlenecks.

He stated that most times, victims and survivors of child abuse are denied access to justice and rehabilitation due to cumbersome processes.

“Every child deserves to grow up in an environment where their rights are respected, their voices are heard, their concerns are taken seriously and effective protection is available whenever those rights are threatened.

“Protecting children is not simply about responding to abuse after it occurs. It is about building stronger laws, institutions, communities and professional systems capable of preventing abuse, identifying risks, responding appropriately, investigating professionally and ensuring that justice remains accessible to every child.

“Stand For Humanity Foundation remains committed to advancing human rights, strengthening child protection, building institutional capacity and promoting a society where every child can live with dignity, safety, justice and hope”, Okeoma submitted.

While child abusers in Imo seem not to be yielding at the moment, it is believed that the fight has raised serious concerns and awareness on the danger the Nigeria child has continued face in the custody of some parents and guardians.

Vanguard News

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