National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) and police operatives have intercepted 12 young persons being transported to Lagos for menial jobs.
The young persons were moved from Ninghar village in Akwanga local government area of Nasarawa State by a pastor whose identity was not disclosed by the personnel of NAPTIP who repatriated the victims to Lafia.
The head of operations at the State Office of NAPTIP, Moses Unongo told newsmen that the victims were intercepted at a popular motor park in Abuja in the process of moving them to Lagos.
He said the pastor told the police after his arrest that some other young persons also from Nasarawa State have already been moved to Lagos to engage in menial jobs.
According to him, the victims were lured by the cleric in the guise of securing profitable jobs for them in Lagos while the minors among them were promised quality education in Lagos State.
He called on parents not to fail in educating their children on the ills of trafficking, saying the agency will enhance the sensitisation of the public in order not to fall victim to trafficking.
Receiving the victims on behalf of the Nasarawa State Government, commissioner for women affairs and social development, Aisha Rufai Ibrahim, appreciated NAPTIP for being dutiful in curbing trafficking in the country.
She noted that the administration of Governor Abdullahi Sule has zero tolerance for trafficking offences in the state, explaining that the state has passed the Violence Against Persons Prohibition bill into law, a springboard for nipping the activities of traffickers in the bud.
She promised that the government will enroll the minors among the victims in primary school to enable them continue with their studies.
