Reps condemn killing of young girls for rituals

• The House called upon the Inspector General of Police to establish a dedicated task force to conduct a comprehensive investigation aimed at exposing the individuals and networks responsible for these acts of violence and ensure that they face the full force of the law
• The House has entrusted the House Committee on Legislative Compliance with the responsibility of overseeing and ensuring the implementation of these resolutions
  

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The House of Representatives has expressed worry about the recent dangerous trend of killing young girls for ritual purposes.

The House is deeply concerned about the alarming rise in heinous crimes, perpetrated by young boys who may be associated with powerful criminal organizations.

Furthermore, it is distressing that young Nigerian girls are now at risk and in danger.
In response to these issues, the House has called upon the Inspector General of Police to establish a dedicated task force to conduct a comprehensive investigation aimed at exposing the individuals and networks responsible for these acts of violence and ensure that they face the full force of the law.

Additionally, the House has entrusted the House Committee on Legislative Compliance with the responsibility of overseeing and ensuring the implementation of these resolutions.

These resolutions were reached following a Matter of Urgent Public Importance (Order 8 Rule 4) addressing the pressing need to combat the alarming trend of young girls being targeted and killed for ritual purposes in Nigeria, which was raised 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 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.