From Scholastica Hir, Makurdi
A Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), the Interface Dialogue Forum for Peace (IDFP), has raised the alarm over new forms of trafficking in Benue state, calling on relevant agencies to be on alert to nip it in the bud.
The Programme Manager of IDFP, Hajia Lantana Abdullahi, disclosed this discovery during an advocacy visit to the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Mrs Anna Itodo, in Makurdi to intimate her on the IDFP project and activities in the state.
Hajia Abdullahi stated that there were emerging issues of silent human organ harvesting and trafficking going on in the state, urging the relevant agencies to tackle them.
She explained that IDFP in partnership with UN Women, was working in four States of the federation including Benue, Bauchi, Ekiti and kaduna, to implement a project seeking to utilize traditional and religious leaders to monitor, prevent and respond to issues of Gender-Based Violence (GBV), in the communities.
She said the visit was to reaffirm the activities through community dialogue, advocacy engagement fora and capacity building sessions and to solicit the support of the ministry to advance the initiatives.
The team was in the state to parley with traditional and religious leaders for the development of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) prevention byelaws. The meeting identified rape, defilement of minors, wife and girl friend battery, family abandonment, child marriages, child labour, educational deprivation, under age prostitution, trafficking in persons, organ harvesting and trafficking, among others, as prevalent and emerging GBV cases that needed to be addressed in the state.
She commended the efforts of the Benue State Government for its consideration of gender sensitive laws, making reference to the VAPP law, the Child Rights law and other laws and bills before the state Assembly, urging the authorities to ensure stiff enforcement and implementation of such inclusive policies.
Responding, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Mrs Anna Itodo represented by the Acting Director Women Affairs, Mrs Magdalene Andor, said there were rumours of organ harvesting but the state government had not officially received a report on it. She assured that such would be looked into, saying that Governor Rev Fr Hyacinth Alia had opened avenues of collaboration with relevant organizations to tackle the issues of GBV in the state.