The House of Representatives has expressed worry about the recent dangerous trend of killing young girls for ritual purposes.
The House is further disturbed that the perpetrators of these heinous crimes are young boys who might not be working alone but with strong cartels.
It is also disturbing that Nigerian young girls have become an endangered species.
The House therefore called on the Inspector General of Police to set up a crack team to conduct a holistic investigation with the sole aim of unmasking the cartels behind these killings and bringing them to justice.
It also mandates the House Committee on Legislative Compliance to ensure compliance with the resolutions.
The resolution was a sequel to a Matter of Urgent Public Importance (Order 8 Rule 4) on the Urgent Need to Curb the Dangerous Trend of Killing Young Girls for Ritual Purposes in Nigeria, moved by: Hon. Awaji-Inombek D. Abiante.
“The House notes the recent wave and sustained killings of our young girls who are mostly undergraduates by their supposed boyfriends for ritual purposes; Also notes with dismay the recent murder of 20 years old Miss Justina Otuene an undergraduate student of the Department of Biochemistry, University of Port Harcourt by Damian Okoligwe who is also an undergraduate student of the
the same university last week; the murder of Augusta Osedion, a final year student of Lead City University in July 2023 by her boyfriend, Benjamin Best who goes by the nickname killaboi in Lagos; the murder of Miss Oghenefejiro Ochuko, a final year student of Ambrose Ali University who was equally killed in August, 2023 by her boyfriend, Victor Ochonogor in Benin and several other unreported cases”, the Motion said.
The Motion also “Worried that these killings have almost become a daily occurrence with several other reported cases of missing females with their whereabouts still unknown; Also worried that few of the reported missing victims are often found dead without traces of the perpetrators; Disturbed that these killings take similar patterns of dismembering the bodies of the victims whereby their vital organs are removed; Further disturbed that the perpetrators of these heinous crimes are young boys who might not be working alone but with strong cartels; Disturbed that our young girls have become an endangered species Cognisant of the need to protect our young girls and indeed every Nigerian as enshrined in section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended)”.
The House observed a minute silence for Otuene, Augusta, Oghenefejiro and other victims of premeditated killings by these heartless gangs.
Dominica Nwabufo
