Tony Osauzo, Benin
The Edo State government has handed over a 70-year-old man, Francis Ezomo, and his two sons, Nosa Ezomo, 26 and Festus Ezomo, 29, to the Edo State Commissioner of Police, Mr Johnson Kokumo, for allegedly defiling a nine-year-old girl, a relative of Mr. Francis Ezomo’s wife.
The acting Chairman of the Edo State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) and Special Adviser to the Edo State Governor on Basic Education, Dr. Joan Osa Oviawe, told journalists after the suspects were handed over to the police at Government House, Benin City, that the case was reported to her office by the headmistress of the girl.
“The issue came to limelight when the headmistress of the girl’s school noticed a change of behaviour in the minor and decided to ask her what the problem was. The nine-year-old girl narrated her ordeal to the headmistress who then informed the education secretary of the local government council, where the alleged crime took place. We then swung into action and got the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development involved,” Dr. Oviawe said.
The SUBEB boss added that when “we could not get the necessary action required from the police, the state government swung into action and these three men were apprehended almost immediately.”
She explained that the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development has taken custody of the child who is now in a safe place and assured that SUBEB would ensure that her education is not truncated.
“What the men have done is bad and their actions have attempted to destroy the life and future of the minor. The three men took advantage of the child and exposed her to trauma. We have waded into the case to ensure that justice prevails,” Oviawe said.
The commissioner of police assured that his men would investigate the allegation and charge the case to court.