BY RITA OYIBOKA
Delta State yesterday doubled down on its commitment to child protection, as the Chairman of the Delta State Child Rights Implementation Committee, Mrs Oghenekevwe Agas, pushed stakeholders to tighten structures across all local government areas, affirming that both the committee and the Ministry of Women Affairs remain fully operational and swift in coordinating interventions whenever cases of child abuse are reported.
Agas, who doubles as Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Women Affairs, Community and Social Development, made the call during the committee’s stakeholders’ meeting at the Chike Edozien Secretariat, Asaba.
The session drew together Heads of Personnel Management (HPMs) across Local Government Areas, representatives of non-governmental organisations, the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), orphanages, the Catholic Women Organisation (CWO), and the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), and other critical partners in the child-protection value chain.
She stressed that the state committee was inaugurated to drive the implementation of provisions in the Child Rights Law. “We meet periodically to evaluate how we are carrying out our assignments. The local governments are also mandated to set up their Child Rights Committees.”
Agas maintained that the state committee has remained effective in coordinating intervention whenever child-abuse cases are reported.
“Day to day, you have reports of children being abused. The committee swings into action, rescuing, reconciling families, and ensuring protection. The meetings help us evaluate our performance, not replace the work itself,” she noted.
The meeting also featured briefing sessions from partner agencies. Chairman of the Association of Orphanages and Homes Operators in Nigeria (ASOHON), Delta State Chapter, Venerable Emmanuel Amaje, raised concerns over illegal adoption activities and the complicity of some regulatory bodies.
Amaje, who heads the St. Barnabas Orphanage Home under the Anglican Diocese of Asaba, disclosed that 62 orphanages are registered with the ministry, but not all operate within legal boundaries.
“We are ensuring that only legitimate operators remain with us. When any home violates our constitution or engages in unauthorised child-adoption processes, we delist them and alert the ministry. If a regulatory body is aware of these illegal deals and takes no action, then it is complicit,” he said.
Beyond regulatory issues, Amaje highlighted funding and operational pressures, calling for government assistance.
The HPM of Bomadi Local Government, Mr Asu Eteku, submitted a report on the spike in drug abuse across Bomadi, Burutu and Patani Local Government Areas, calling for the establishment of rehabilitation facilities to stem the rising wave of substance abuse and its associated social crises.
Several other organisations delivered their reports, after which the meeting closed with an extensive question-and-answer session and renewed directives to HPMs to strengthen grassroots child-protection committees across their Local Government Areas.
