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Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Sonny Echeonu, alleged, yesterday, that some state governors and members of the National Assembly marry under-age girls in Nigeria.
He said this at the 100-year anniversary of ‘Save The Children’, which held at Transcorp Hilton, on Tuesday.
Echeonu, who was represented by Nkiru Osisioma, made this statement while commending the ‘Save The Children’ project on their intervention in the Nigerian education sector, particularly in states affected by Boko Haram insurgency.
The representative of the permanent secretary said the reason certain states are delaying in implementing the Child Rights Act in their states is that some governors are culprits of child abuse themselves.
“When we visited the IDP camps last month in Borno State, let me announce to you that it was only teachers from Save The Children that were found teaching in the IDP camps.
“About 20 states have implemented it but it’s not all the states, because some governors are culprits.
“ They wed underage children. They don’t want to implement it in their states. Even some of the National Assembly members, they wed underage children,” she said.
Echeonu said ‘Save the Children’ project has been assisting in capacity building in a programme called Safe School Declaration.
He said the programme is aimed at ensuring schools are protected from attacks and the military men are not allowed to use schools as their base.
The official said before the ministers left last month, the Federal Executive Council had approved the implementation of Safe School Declaration in Nigeria.
Mrs. Osisioma announced that there is a new rule enforced by the Ministry of Education, which states that if you are not a professional teacher, registered with the Teacher’s Association, then you cease to be a teacher.
Meanwhile, Chief of Child Protection, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Milan Kidane, said UNICEF stands together with Save the Children, in the firm belief that investing in children is a fundamental responsibility without which development is impossible.
Mrs. Kidane, who was the UNICEF representative at the event, said the first way to make the plight of children better is to listen to them and hear what they have to say.
“The first role is to actually listen, to really understand what they want us to do and design programs that address their concerns not concerns that we think they need,” she said.
She said it is time that all states of the country implement and apply the Child Rights Act.
At the event, Senator representing Kwara Central, Ibrahim Oloriegbe, said there is need to realise the peculiar and special needs of children.
“They are not adults, they are helpless and it is the responsibility of the adults to protect them and not exploit them,” he said
