No More Lodging Of Underage Girls In Hotels, FG Warns

The federal government has urged hoteliers across the country not to keep juveniles and underage girls in their facilities or face sanctions.

Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, Minister of Women Affairs, read the riot codes on Saturday at the ‘Unlock Training and Grants’ ceremony in Abuja.

Abiola Arogundade, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Technical, Vocational, and Entrepreneurship Education, organised the programme, which awarded N100 million to 200 young entrepreneurs.

In January 2023, some students from Federal Government College in Ijanikin, Lagos, were found fleeing school to lodge female classmates in motels for sexual romps.

According to PUNCH Online, the pupils, who are all boarders, scaled the school’s fence alongside their female counterparts on multiple occasions and stayed out of school for days.

Our correspondent’s findings revealed that the students participated in the act ranged in age from 14 to 17.

Similarly, in April 2022, a video footage of a 15-year-old boy being assaulted while attempting to accommodate two girls and another man in a hotel room went popular on social media.

When the voice behind the camera sought to question the adolescent schoolgirls about their goal, they took off running.

But Kennedy-Ohanenye promised that it would no longer be business as usual.

To demonstrate the Federal Government’s seriousness, the minister revealed that hoteliers, particularly in the Federal Capital Territory, have been asked to display a sign outside their establishments warning prospective guests not to lodge any underage girls on their premises.

She also extended the riot acts to school administrators around the country, telling them not to allow any student to be mistreated by teachers or pupils.

She said, “Nigeria must be better. From 20th (June), we have directed hotels to put a sign outside from the Ministry of Women. No lodging of underage girls. (Otherwise) what happened in Niger State will be an understatement of what will happen in the FCT and I mean it.

“No more lodging of underage girls and no more bullying in schools.”

The minister informed journalists that the FG has launched an investigation into a viral video featuring ten Nigerian teenagers rescued from prostitution in Ghana.

Three of the victims, aged 15 to 16, were claimed to be from the same parents.

They were allegedly beaten, molested, and forced into prostitution without pay.

While detailing their condition, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Chairman of the Nigerian Diaspora Commission, stated that the girls were rescued following a tip-off from NIDO, the umbrella body of Nigerians living in Ghana.

Kennedy-Ohanenye, on the other hand, vowed that the government would take definitive action on the issue by next Monday.

“Women are suffering in this country. Today, we have talked about the need to allow the poor to breathe in this country.

“Meanwhile I am sure you saw the video circulating about our girls taken to Ghana. Did you see it? Very good. Action will start on Monday. You will hear about our action first thing on Monday morning. That is the first thing I am going to approach and see what we can do about it,” she fumed.

A Gentle Reminder: Every obstacle is a stepping stone, every morning; a chance to go again, and those little steps take you closer to your dream.

Nnamdi Okoli