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From Desmond Mgboh, Kano
The Kano State Government has vowed to deal decisively with perpetrators and promoters of illegal child adoption and trafficking in the state.
The Kano State Commissioner for Women Affairs, Children and Persons with Special Needs, Amina Abdullahi Sani, held that the government was opposed to all forms of child trafficking, illegal adoption, child abuse, exploitation and neglect of young ones, describing such acts as inhumane, criminal and unacceptable.
Her reaction followed the case of the trafficking of two illegally obtained babies from their young mothers at Kwana Hudu area of the state capital, allegedly by a staff member of Abdullahi Wase Specialists Hospital, Kano.
The case was first reported to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) in the state, which later alerted the ministry.
The Ministry, in a statement by Bintu Nuhu Yakasai, its Director of Public Enlightenment, affirmed that preliminary investigation suggested the babies were obtained from vulnerable young girls with unwanted pregnancies and subsequently taken out of Kano State without due legal process or authorisation.
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The Ministry said it also gathered that some individuals exploit vulnerable young women facing unwanted pregnancies by unlawfully collecting and transporting their newborn children outside Kano State for illegal adoption and possible trafficking purposes.
In the meantime, the Commissioner for Women Affairs, Children and Persons with Special Needs, alongside her directors and senior officials from the Ministry, has paid a visit to NAPTIP’s office to ensure that appropriate steps are being taken in line with the law and in the best interest of the affected children.
The Commissioner warned that the Ministry, in collaboration with NAPTIP and other security and child protection agencies, would not tolerate any individual or group found engaging in activities that violate the rights, dignity, religious identity and welfare of children.
The Commissioner reaffirmed the commitment of the government to protecting children and vulnerable persons across the state and urged the public to remain vigilant and promptly report suspicious activities relating to child trafficking, illegal adoption, abuse or neglect to the appropriate authorities.
She assured the public that further investigations were ongoing and that anyone found culpable would face the full weight of the law.
