The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has rescued 11 children from suspected traffickers in Taraba State.
The children, who were intercepted with the support of the state’s Ministry of Women Affairs and Child Development in Wukari local government and one other in Jalingo, the state capital, were reported to have been trafficked to Delta State for a vocational training.
Taraba State Commissioner for Women Affairs, Mary Sinjen, expressed concern over the increasing cases of child trafficking in the state.
Sinjen, who decried the situation, lamented that innocent children were mostly deceived and subjected to all form of abuses exploitations and denial of their fundamental rights.
She explained that instead of acquiring vocational skills, the children were confined and exposed to degrading conditions, capable of ruining their future.
Sinjen condemned the act and maintained that human trafficking would not be tolerated in Taraba State.
She reminded perpetrators of such criminal activity that with the recent assent to the Taraba State Prohibition Against Human Trafficking Bill, they would henceforth face stiffer sanctions.
NAPTIP Commander in Taraba State, Bako Amos Gambo disclosed that the children were held in a building in Delta State for about eight months, during which they were forced into cybercrime activities and denied basic freedoms.
Gambo who lamented that the victims were tortured and deprived of liberty, appealed to governments and stakeholders to intensify interventions to prevent similar occurrences.
He further appealed to parents, traditional rulers, community leaders, and religious bodies to remain vigilant and promptly report suspicious cases to the authorities.
