By Mustapha Sumaila
Abuja – The National Population Commission (NPC), on Tuesday pledged to provide necessary assistance to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) to eliminate incidence of human trafficking in the country.
The Director-General of the commission, Dr Ghaji Bello, made the promise when he received a team, led by the Director-General of NAPTIP, Ms Julie Okah-Donli, during an advocacy visit in Abuja.
Bello said that NPC was determined and willing to collaborate in any way possible to tackle the ongoing menace of human trafficking.
He announced that the commission has appointed a liaison officer that would work with the Investigation and Intelligence Department of NAPTIP to forestall cases of falsification of birth certificates by child traffickers in their desperate move to traffic their victims out of the country.
The NPC director-general, who described human traffickers as wicked fellows and enemies of the society, pledged the commission’s readiness to partner with NAPTIP especially in the areas of proper identification through birth registration data.
Bello commended the NAPTIP boss for her tireless efforts aimed at ensuring security and stability in the country.
He called on all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the country to support NAPTIP in its bid to ensure the protection of Nigerians.
Earlier Okah-Donli, disclosed that due to the intense heat on the traffickers, some of them have now devised new means of carrying out their nefarious activities by embarking on age falsification in order to ensure smooth sail for their victims.
She explained that some of the traffickers now besiege make shift business centres where they produce false birth declaration as part of the requirement for the procurement of visa for victims especially children bought from some of the orphanages.
The NAPTIP boss called for mutual cooperation between the two agencies in order to collectively fight human trafficking in the country.
She also appealed to the commission to avail her agency some levels of waiver in the condition attached to the verification of birth certificates.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Okah-Donli had recently commenced advocacy visits to some of the critical stakeholders and partners of the agency as part of the strategic steps towards mass mobilisation against human trafficking in Nigeria.
(NAN)