Parents especially mothers have to be on alert on the whereabouts of their small children; those that have started walking and are always on the move. Within a twinkle of an eye, you would not see them and have to go searching for them even at home, but when outside the house you cannot take chances.
A 16-months-old child Muhammed Abidin went missing at Green Heritage College of Education in Games Village, Bauchi where his mother Sa’adatu Abdullahi went with him. He was found dead some days later.
According to her on Saturday, August 19 she was writing a test, he went out and she went and brought him. Then he went out again without her knowledge. After she finished the test she went and looked for him in the places he usually used to play, but he was nowhere to be found.
She informed the lecturer and her classmates and they all went around searching for the little boy, the school authorities later called the police. The boy’s father Alkasim also reported the case to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), but it was eight days later that Muhammad’s lifeless body was discovered with his eyes and nose removed in a soak away within the premises of the school.
The Bauchi State Governor, Senator Bala Mohammed has ordered the Ministry of Education and the police to close the school until the case is investigated.
It is however surprising that in the story there was no mention of security guards at the school who should be put to task as to what had happened. So where were they or the school doesn’t have security that anyone can come and go just because it is a school?
How could a child go missing within a short time but his lifeless body be found later in a soak away in the school?
There are many evil people around that all they need is a split-second opportunity to carry out their devious acts.
Some send out people to roam about and as is normal in our local communities where little children go outside; they lure them with sweets and biscuits and abduct them to be used for ritual or to sell them.
Some also go to schools and pretend to be parents to collect their children and abduct children.
One woman told me that her children’s school had stopped children from going out of the class when school closed. They have to stay in their classes until their parents go to pick them up and sign. The school took this decision when two boys were abducted in the school, though they were later found.
The Green Heritage College of Education is a private school and Governor Bala Mohammed said though they welcomed the establishment of private schools they would not tolerate loss of lives in their names. Therefore those in charge of establishing such schools and supervising them should do their job well and not overlook some things as a favour or whatever.
In some places, people hire or borrow some items that are needed in their labs or premises for security reasons to get approval that is why it is good to make a surprise visit to ascertain the true condition of things.
The ritual of using body parts for making money is the cause of killing children or adults found dead with their body parts missing. Sometimes some people are arrested with body parts including human skulls, haba!
Apart from parents, we should all be vigilant and on the lookout to protect our little ones, even as those that have schools and other establishments have a responsibility to protect those that go there.
