The Ebonyi Government says it will stop street hawking to eradicate the abuse of school-aged children in the state.

Mr Godwin Igwe, the Head of Child Development, Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, made this known on Tuesday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abakaliki.

Igwe said, “The ban is aimed at curbing all forms of child abuse, child labour and neglect.’’

According to him, such abuses, as noticed in the state, include child abuse, child trafficking and other forms of violence against children.

He explained that through hawking, children could be subjected to rape, ritual killings and trafficking, among other related cases.

“Children hawking, whether after, during school hours or weekends, is not allowed.

“If caught, the person will be punished,’’ Igwe said.

He added that the ministry would work in partnership with the Ministry of Information and Education, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and Nigeria Peace Corp (NPC), among others to achieve its goals.

“Child abuses and violence against children have been seen as custom and normal ways of treating children in the society and such trend ought to be redressed.

“It is based on this that we want to sensitise the public against this negative practice.

“Some people do not know that it is wrong to maltreat a child, neglect or subject the child to torture or any form of inhuman treatment,’’ Igwe said.

He decried the increasing rate of child abuse and charged parents and guardians of victims to report such cases to the appropriate authority.

Igwe added that perpetrators of such acts would be treated accordingly, to serve as deterrent to others.

He also spoke against the attitude of some parents, whom he said, collected money from the perpetrators for settlement without minding the damage caused on the victims.

He advised parents to always monitor the activities of their children so as to prevent the future recurrence.

The ministry official said that Police should be encouraged to assist in ensuring the protection of children rights.

He emphasised the readiness of the ministry to work with the police so that the welfare, survival and development of a child would be protected.

Igwe added that the media would also be engaged in the dissemination of information.

“We implore the judiciary to given attention to cases of child abuse.

“Legal personnel, who have undergone training on child rights, should be given the chance to handle such case.

“We have plan to invite local government chairmen, social workers and stakeholders to sensitise them on the need to step-up measures against child abuse, especially in the rural areas, which seem to be worst hit.’’

Also, the Desk Officer, National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) in the ministry, Mrs Florence Onwa, confirmed the increasing rate of child abuse.

Onwa said that campaigns had been taken to market places and industrial sites, while the ministry was also making arrangement for advocacy visits to the traditional, community and opinion leaders in the state.

“Parents should stop sending their children to unknown persons; but if there is need to do so, they ought to be sure of whom the intending masters and mistresses are,’’ she said. (NAN)


http://www.metronaija.ng/ebonyi-ban-hawking/

cc: lalasticlala mynd44

“Children hawking, whether after, during school hours or weekends, is not allowed."

-Great

A sad reminder of the inequalities in the land, economic imbalance in the Republic, and wickedness/selfishness of the political class whether APC or PDP.

Ebonyi is the only state in the whole of the South east that you find a governor

Outside ebonyi others are worse than Yahaya bello and Jigawa governor

Do children of school age hawk in Ebonyi state?

I thought they are all in school. Abi all wetin we dey read online na lie.

sarrki:
Ebonyi is the only state in the whole of the South east that you find a governor

Outside ebonyi others are worse than Yahaya bello and Jigawa governor

Even your friend Okoroawusa

uglyafonja:


Even your friend Okoroawusa

Jokes apart

Ebonyi Governor is wonderful

sarrki:


Jokes apart
Ebonyi Governor is wonderful

And your Okoroawusa is wonderful too

How about the unemployed youths who use hawking to get their livelyhood

Which other work will idiotic pigs of Biafra be doing

Good move!! I think their citizens who has been causing embarrassment for the state by littering most major corners of streets @New market rd Onitsha and Brass Junction Aba should be bundled and sent back to school.

Things have fallen apart in the South East.. they are only grasping on to straws for survival.

No jobs, no electricity, nothing.. yet they want to ban hawking.
What will the common fla.ttie be left with to eat

But it is ebonyi ppl wey full everywhere dey hawk. This will affect remittances from their diaspora hawkers and IGR will drop

they should as well provide them with free education

Story story. Ban Hawking in ebonyi indeed. Even Lagos state has find its difficult to ban Hawking. Why will you ban hawkers from street trading when you have no alternative job for them?

you better allow them to hawk so hunger won't kill them i though ipob said they are the richest in nigeria

Alariwo2:
Things have fallen apart in the South East.. they are only grasping on to straws for survival.

No jobs, no electricity, nothing.. yet they want to ban hawking.
What will the common fla.ttie be left with to eat

Powder business is booming.

Lies from afonja bureau of statistics.
There are no hawkers in d east.
billionaire everywhere, who have time to hawk. Na only afonja dey hawk
We are business men. D ones u see Hawking meatpie and fanyogo are afonjas dat we give Igbo name

Igbo amaka