Gov Sule Child Right Act, Raping, Violence Against Women, Street Begging And Anti-Kidnapping Law, One Step Forward, Two Steps Backward

Rabiu Omaku

The Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule, It would be recalled signed into law the Child Right Protection Executive Order, The anti-Kidnapping law Raping, Violence against womenfolk and street begging by under age or street urchins, but two years after the Governor’s assent, The executive orders are nothing but motion without movement.

The Executive Order seeks to ban child street begging, Child labour, prostitution, and amongst other social vices in the state as the new law prescribes ten years imprisonment for parents who allow their children to go into street begging.

The questions that needed ardent answers is two years down the drain still the hope of clearing away the street of Lafia and other Local Government of street urchins has been dashed away, some concerned indigents of the State continued to ask pertinent question on what the mechanism put in place to ensure either partial or full implementation of the executive orders sees the light of the day.

Onlookers attributed the rising waves of crime and criminality in the State to the hands in glove of the State Governor, Engineer Abdullahi Sule for not implementing those laws hanging on the balance despite the chunk number of resources and energy wasted.

Opinion shapers are of the view that the signing of the executive orders was a total mirage The Governor however, also signed into law the State Anti-Kidnapping bill to curb kidnapping in its totality in Nasarawa State, the anti-kidnapping law prescribes the death penalty and life imprisonment for anyone found guilty of the act. It also prescribes forfeiture of buildings used to accommodate kidnappers and their victims. Due to the hand-in-glove of the executive Governor, kidnappers have resorted to the kidnapping of paramount rulers in the State.

Recalled that the monarch of Gurku community in Karu Local Government was kidnapped alongside his wife before they were freed, Recently, the traditional ruler of the Gwon Mama community in Fatin Ruwa, in Wamba Local Government, these are few kidnappings including the abduction of six under school children in Al-waza village in Doma Local Government.

On the issue of raping, After the intermittent protest by women to the Government House, Assembly, and the State command of the Nigeria Police aftermath of the raping of a three-month-old baby in Adogi, Stakeholders in the State resolved that any person caught raping, his penis should be chopped off, Nawani Aboki gave the disclosure during a town hall meeting at Aliyu Akwe Doma Bamqueth hall.

Another question to ask is how realistic is the Government to that good law that would end those social vices, Some onlookers blamed the State Government for the complete failure of those laws that may reshape the State if followed religiously.

It could be recalled that the late State Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Chief Philip Tatari Shekwor was killed by his assailant a few meters away from his abode along Kurikyo-Sabon Pegi road,

While on the issue of violence against womenfolk in the State A Director from the Ministry of Women Affairs, In an exclusive Interview confirmed that there is a rising spate of the number of happening in the Ministry.

Universal Reporters Online In An Interview With the Attorney General of the State, Bar. Labaran Magaji who was recently appointed cleared the air on what he will do to ensure that those neglected laws see the light of the day.

When asked about the effort put in place by Governor Abdullahi Sule to ensure the enforcement of the Child Right Act, Raping, Violence Against Womenfolk, Street Begging, And the Anti-Kidnapping Law which were assented by the Governor during his first tenure.

The Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice averred that the State Government is working tirelessly to ensure the full enforcement of all domesticated laws.

“We are working tirelessly to ensure the full enforcement of all domesticate laws, though I just took over, I will not hesitate to study the handover note”.

According to the commissioner, the ministry has the mandate of the Chief executive, Abdullahi Sule to activate the enforcement of the laws in order to protect the vulnerable especially women and children from abuse.

He however added that the team of counsels from the ministry is ready to prosecute any person no matter his or her status if he commits a crime against the state.

“With my background as a public prosecutor, I will bring my experience to bear to ensure adherence to the rule of law in the state.

“I have served as a public prosecutor for the past 10 years and the ministry under my watch would do its best to ensure due process and the rule of law,”

On the case between some group of pensioners and the State Government that led to the garnishee of bank accounts of both State and Local Government, the commissioner promised to resolve the impasse without further delay.

“I am yet to receive a briefing on the issue between the State government and the pensioners, a

The State Government, but we will employ every means legally to resolve the issue as soon as I get a proper briefing,”

Barr. Magaji therefore called on the staff of the ministry to take their jobs seriously and avoid truancy and absenteeism as it would no longer be business as usual.

Universal Reporters recalled that the Government of Nasarawa State commenced the repatriation of under-age beggars popularly known as Al-Majirai, while others referred to them as street urchins to their States of origin after committing chunk amount of money to a committee set up to repatriate under-age street urchins back to their states of origin, today everything is history as the law that forbids under age roaming the street is death on arrival.

The Governor like his counterparts in other States of the Federation came up with this idea to reduce the widespread coronavirus pandemic, Engineer Abdullahi Sule, did not only repatriate the underage beggars but assented to some laws that will end under-age begging in the State, especially the State capital.

The initiative was criticized left, right, and center mostly by Islamic clerics who are first-hand beneficiaries of modern-day slaves, in an exclusive interview, experts from the Ministry of Women Affairs expressed divergent thoughts on the future of the affected children.

Others are of the view that Nasarawa state is gradually becoming a safe haven for street urchins as trailers and lorries bring the underage street beggars in the middle of the night from mostly northern states and dump them at the popular spot “Welcome to Lafia” or the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) mega station along Jos-Akwanga highway, an outskirt of the state capital, at times the lucky almajiri are taking to a popular meeting point in the heartbeat of Lafia, “Total filling station” in Lafia.

The situation remains unchanged as those street beggars have diverse means of survival.

It could be recalled that Governor Abdullahi Sule during the hit of the coronavirus pandemic, over 3000 street urchins were sent back to their states of origin, this initiative was meant to create a conducive atmosphere in the Northern part of the country which continued to generate serious heats especially Islamic instructors who are the first beneficiaries of begging.

A few months after the street Beggers regroove and returned fully causing a nuisance to ministries, Departments, and Agencies especially the office of the Secretary to the State Government and traffic lights, the unfolding is that they did not only return to the street but littered offices, filling stations asking for daily bread.

The questions that needed answers are what really is the Ministry of Justice doing in that regard, how many parents, guardians, or Islamic instructors harboring such street Beggars under a shelter and why was the law so salient over the issue which is a time bomb ready to explode.

Again, with the signing of the Child Rights Act by the Executive Governor of the state amongst other bills, what happened to the take-off of the full implementation of such laws?

Before the coming of Engineer Abdullahi Sule as the third democratically elected Governor of the state, the Child Rights Act suffered in the state under the administration of the first executive Governor, Abdullahi Adamu in spite of the frantic approach of the then House of Assembly in 2005 under the headship of the Rt. Honorable Speaker, Mohammed Ogoshi Onawo.

Analysts are of the view that the Judicial system of Government in the state is not leaving to expectations, the reason being that there is hand in -glove to prosecute offenders, the committee set up by the incumbent administration with the immediate past Commissioner of Women Affairs, Hajiya Halima Jabiru was a total sham, competent sources revealed that dozens of the street Beggers from far Northern states were brought to Nasarawa state in a truck heading to the Eastern part of the country and dumped them at Lafia filling station.

An Islamic cleric Yusuf Kirgi, was piqued over the rising spate of street Beggers especially the under-age children known as street urchins, in other words, Al-Majirai roaming the street in search of food in the name of acquiring Islamic education urged parents to take full responsibility of their children instead of allowing them roaming the street in the name of Islamic education.

The Chief Imam of the State Secretariat Mosque, Lafia described the unfolding as non-Islamic practice and insisted that parents must take full responsibility for their children instead of giving them to society to fend for themselves.

The verse Islamic scholar in an interview said parents must be ready to take the upbringing of their children or be ready to give vivid accounts of their actions and inactions in dealing with family issues in the hereafter.

Mallam Yusuf Kirgi kicked against street begging in it entirety, saying the practice is anti-Islam, while condemning almajiri system of Islamic education by under age children, he said every person must give an account of how he brought up his children either an Islamic way of life or not, whether he fed and cloth them very well or not.

Calling on Muslims to exhibit the fear of God by taking full responsibility for their children at all times but not allowing them to roam the street in search of food.

“Though we have an exception with some category, like the physically impaired, that is the needy but did not allowed children roaming the street instead of acquiring the main education. as he expressed concern.

He stated this when reacting over the rising waves of street begging in Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital as well as other Local Governments, the Chief Imam frowned at the escalating waves of explosion of almajiri into Nasarawa State.

It would be recalled that the State Governor, Engineer Abdullahi Sule, despite the proactive steps taken to address street begging in the name of acquiring Islamic education evacuated al-majirai back to their states of origin during the hit of coronavirus, begging by the underage remain unabated.

Nasarawa State is gradually becoming a safe haven for street urchins as trailers and lorries brought the underage street beggars in the middle of the night from mostly northern states and dumped them at the

The Nasarawa State  Correspondent of Universal Reporters recalled the re-emergence of the swamp of beggars from Nasarawa state to their States of origin after committing a chunk amount of money to a committee set to repatriate under age street urchins back to their states of origin during the hit of coronavirus pandemic by the Nasarawa state Governor, Engineer Abdullahi Sule, an Islamic cleric and experts from the ministry of women affairs expressed divergent thought on the future of the affected children.

Others are of the view that Nasarawa state is gradually becoming a safe haven for street urchins as trailers and lorries bring the underage street beggars in the middle of the night from mostly northern states and dump them at the popular spot “Welcome to Lafia” or the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) mega station along Jos-Akwanga highway, an outskirt of the state capital, at times the lucky almajiri are taking to a popular meeting point in the heartbeat of Lafia, “Total filling station” in Lafia.

That explained the beginning of initiation to the land of begging in the name of acquiring Islamic education, those under children are left to feed on themselves, some experts attributed the rising spate of insecurity to lack of attention as well as bad parenting to the unabated crime and criminalities ranging from banditry, killing, maiming, kidnapping, raping and other miscellaneous crimes.

Mallam Yusuf Kirgi the Chief Imam of Secretariat Mosque in Lafia in an interview with Universal Reporters some months back, kicked against street begging in its entirety in Islam, while he condemned almajiri system of Islamic education by underage children, he said every person must give an account of how he brought up his children either in the Islamic way of life or not, whether he fed and cloth them very well or not saying children are a gift from Allah Subhanahu Watallah.

Calling on Muslims to exhibit the fear of God by taking full responsibility for their children at all times but not allowing them to roam the street in search of greener pastures or ways of acquiring education.

He stated this when reacting over the rising waves of street begging in Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital, the Chief Imam frowned at the escalating waves of explosion of almajiri, he described the happening as anti-Islam, calling on parents to consider the plight of children roaming the street in the name of seeking for Islamic education.

He however called on Muslims to exhibit the fear of God in their daily life affairs, the Nasarawa state governor, Engineer Abdullahi Sule despite the proactive steps taken to address street begging in the name of acquiring Islamic education evacuated Al-majirai back to their states of origin during the hit of Coronavirus pandemic.

The proactive measures to curb the rising spate of street beggars especially under-age street urchins from the street of the state capital, as he released a huge amount of money to carry out the project under the headship of the immediate past commissioner of Women Affairs, Hajiya Halima Jabiru to do the needful.

A few months after the disappearance of the pandemic, the underage Al-Majira returned to the streets of Nasarawa State, effort to clear the street of Lafia, the state capital of street urchins, Beggers by underage remained unabated, the new dimension taken by the street urchins was patronizing petrol station, offices and new speed bumps erected at 500 housing units along Doma road.

The new meeting point also serves as point for security agencies like army, police, not force, members of the state police, Nasarawa Youth Empowerment Scheme initiated by the immediate past Governor of the state, Umaru Tanko Al-Makura, others that have taken over  the  speed bumps are men of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) , the Federal Road Safety Commission which is now a new convergence zone for the  underage children are seen at the new speed bumps erected by a proprietor of a new private school at the 500 ho

The Islamic teacher during an exclusive interview Quoting verses of the Quran, That children are gifts from God and should not be treated with disdain, adding that every parent will on the sway of judgment give an account of how he raised his children or wards.

He however called on Muslims to exhibit the fear of God in their daily life affairs, despite the effort of Engineer Abdullahi Sule to clear the street of Lafia, the state capital of street urchins, begging by underage remain unabated.

The new dimension taken by the street urchins was patronizing petrol stations, the new trend was that underage children were seen at the new speed bumps erected by a proprietor of a new private school at 500 housing units along Doma road.

In a related development, A Child Rights expert from the state Ministry of Women Affairs harps on concerted measures to block the gap in the evacuation and the return of street urchins to the streets of Lafia, The state capital, also extended to the other Local Governments, saying preparation are at top gear to accommodate out of school children and street urchins from the street of Nasarawa state, insisting that there is no going back by the State Government, an expert in the state who spoke on the condition of anonymity described the move as an exercise in futility while considering the number of al-major roaming the street.

Some experts in the field attributed the pressure mounted on the Attorney General of the state, Abdulkarim Kana not to prosecute parents of children that flouted the provision of the Child Right Act which forbids child labour , child prostitution, and child army, amongst other negative perceptions.

The prevalence and consequences of street begging among adults and children roaming the streets of Nasarawa state had a serious implication that needed urgent answer, besides the population of underage street beggars increasing on a daily basis, it was gathered that the population of adolescents in the state also constitute 32

Some of the clerics insisted on regular sensitization, rehabilitation, policy to punish the perpetrators, the need to implement the laws of the land, provision of sound education to replace Al-majiri education in Nigeria, and training the trainable ones in different vocations; Were among the remediating strategies. advocacy campaign, constant sensitization, counseling on the need for sound education, and entrepreneurial education were the implications for counseling. Among the recommendations made were Government to prevent economic hardship, and provide free education at all levels, and jobs for all.

All efforts to speak to the police command to know the Kidnapping cases and arrests made since the signing of failed laws, only time shall tell.