Delta State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Ekemejero Ohwovoriole, SAN, has lamented the increasing rate of human trafficking, especially the girl child in the state.
Ohwovoriole decried the increase in his office in Asaba when the Zonal Commander of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons ( NAPTIP) , Mr Nduka Nwawenne paid him a courtesy visit.
The Attorney-General stated that it was against the dignity of the state and disheartening to see that Delta State now ranked first in human trafficking, overtaking Edo State.
He stressed the need for stakeholders to tackle the menace, adding that if it was one single victim that was rescued, they would be rewarded for their efforts.
Ohwovoriole stated that young girls were the most vulnerable ones in the issue of human trafficking, stressing that children from poor family backgrounds also fall victim to human trafficking.
While saying that their request for an office space in the state would be looked into, to see how the government could be of assistance to them, he assured them of his ministry’s partnership in the fight against human trafficking.
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He said that the task force on human trafficking and irregular migration, which he chairs, should be having regular meetings.
Earlier, the Zonal Commander of NAPTIP, Mr. Nwawenne informed the Commissioner that Delta State had overtaken Edo State as the foremost state in human trafficking in Nigeria.
He told the Attorney-General that their zonal command was the first zonal command to be established in Nigeria because of the prevailing issues of human trafficking in the area, noting that Ika South was the highest in cases of human trafficking as a result of its proximity with Edo State.
Nwawenne appealed to the Commissioner and the state government to provide office accommodation for their officials to operate in Asaba.
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