Abia State Police Command officers raided a baby factory in Aba on Thursday night and rescued 16 pregnant inmates.
The police also rescued eight children, including five males and three females.
Parading the inmates on Friday, an operative from the Rapid Response Squad, which led the operation, stated that the rescue was based on credible information provided by locals.
The RRS operative stated, “Yesterday night, we decided to visit the location, a four-story building with ten flats and another adjacent building in the same compound.”
We managed to capture 16 of them, all of whom were pregnant. One of the facilitators, Onyinyechi, was also pregnant, and another, Ekpene (male) who lives in the compound, was arrested as well. Eight children were recovered.
“The operative said they were still looking for other occupants while the investigation was underway, adding, “We are tracking them.”Speaking, the state Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Mrs. Ngozi Felix, represented by her Permanent Secretary, Mrs. Ogechi Oguama, expressed her delight, saying, “Today, we are celebrating International Women’s Day, we are receiving back women’social mothers’ on their path to destruction.”
He also stated that the ministry is collaborating with the office of the state governor’s wife to receive the women and has promised to keep them in “good custody while the investigation is ongoing.”She lamented that most vices stem from poverty and urged parents to be open with their children and raise them in the right traditions.
Also speaking, Ferdinand Ekeoma, the state governor’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, praised the police and other security agencies for the achievement, stating that they have demonstrated commitment and professionalism, and that this is not the first time they have accomplished the feat.”The truth is that if they had not demonstrated professionalism and commitment to maintaining sanity, the discovery might not have occurred.
The state police determined that whoever is involved in the illegal activity must be brought to justice, and they require the public’s assistance in the form of credible information.”We as a government are committed to restoring peace, security, and normalcy in our state.
The Ministry of Women Affairs, in collaboration with the First Lady’s office, will do everything humanly possible to ensure that those girls are protected and properly cared for, while we will provide the necessary support to our security agencies, particularly the police, to ensure that those responsible are prosecuted,” he said.
Ekeoma reminded everyone that “this is not our culture, and we are not known for this.” He also urged parents to discourage their children from engaging in “this type of activity,” and warned those who see it as a way to make money that it is an unholy business, immoral, unacceptable, and anti-society.
The majority of the “Social Women” (inmates) said they went there because their parents abandoned them.