The Ministry of Women Affairs has finalized plans to prevent hotels in the country from lodging underage girls.
Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, announced this on Saturday at the ‘Unlock Training and Grants’ ceremony in Abuja. She stated that banning the lodging of young girls in hotels will help combat the menace of trafficking.
Kennedy-Ohanenye’s announcement followed the recent rescue of ten teenage Nigerian girls allegedly trafficked to Ghana for prostitution.
She said the Ministry of Women Affairs will take action against such practices starting on Monday.
Hoteliers will be mandated to display a ‘No Lodging of Underage Girls’ sign outside their establishments.
The Minister also directed school proprietors across the country to address bullying by teachers or students.
“Meanwhile, I am sure you saw the video circulating about our girls taken to Ghana. Did you see it? Very good. Action will start on Monday. You will hear about our action first thing on Monday morning. That is the first thing I am going to approach and see what we can do about it.”
“Nigeria must be better. From 20th (June), we have directed hotels to put a sign outside from the Ministry of Women. No lodging of underage girls. (Otherwise) what happened in Niger State will be an understatement to what will happen in the FCT and I mean it. No more lodging of underage girls and no more bullying in schools.”
According to the Chairperson of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the teenage girls rescued in Ghana were reportedly lured from Nigeria to Ghana by a nameless man who has now been arrested by the police in a neighbouring West African country.
The NIDCOM boss said the girls were rescued by the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation (NIDO), an umbrella association for Nigerians living in Ghana.
In a viral video which showed the girls after they were rescued, a NIDO official was heard saying, “We just rescued all these ones from one single person, innocent Nigerian children that were brought here to do what they wouldn’t have wished to do to.
“They are helpless. They picked them and sent them to do prostitution and they would be collecting money from these innocent children.”
