The Police Command in Yobe on Friday, warned parents and guardians against abandoning their children and wards for whatever reasons.
The Command’s Spokesman, ASP Dungus Abdulkarim, gave the warning in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Damaturu.
He said that the warning became necessary considering a recent case in which three children, aged between five years and seven years , were found stranded and distressed at Red Bricks in Damaturu.
“Investigations conducted by the command revealed that they came all the way from Mafa, a border town between Nigeria and Niger, to Kukareta and walked for about 30km to Damaturu.
“ From all indication, parents of the two girls and the boy had prepared them for this adventure because they bought them new clothes and shoes.
“ They said that their father gave them N5,000 which they used in boarding a vehicle to Biu, but the driver, for unknown reason, decided to drop them in Kukareta,” Abdulkarim said.
The spokesman noted that child abandonment was dangerous as it could expose children to sexual abuses or recruitment by bandits.
“ Even, if parents have financial challenges, the best thing to do is to contact traditional rulers or local authorities for support instead of abandoning their children and putting their lives at risk,” he advised.
Abdulkarim said that the rescued children had been handed over to the Ministry of Youth Sports and Social Development.
He said that investigation to track down their parents was ongoing.
