By Rita Enemuru, Reporting
THE National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has intensified its grassroots campaign against human trafficking by inaugurating five additional Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Violence Against Persons Vanguard Clubs in public schools across Delta State.
The new clubs bring the total number of such institutions under the initiative to fifteen. All the benefiting schools are part of the Schools Anti-Trafficking Education and Advocacy Project (STEAP), a programme supported by the Government of the Netherlands.
Performing the inauguration at Owa Alero Secondary School, Owa Alero, the Zonal Commander of NAPTIP’s Benin Zonal Command, which covers Edo and Delta States, Mr Sam Offiah, stated that the clubs were designed to engage students directly in the fight against human trafficking, recognising that young people are particularly susceptible to exploitation.
Mr Offiah charged members of the anti-trafficking vanguard clubs to take up the responsibility of sensitising their peers, parents, and community members about the perils of human trafficking and to resist any attempts by traffickers to deceive them.
He painted a stark picture of the consequences faced by trafficking victims, which included forced labour, sexual abuse, unwanted pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections, organ harvesting, drowning, and premature death.
The NAPTIP commander further educated the students on the methods traffickers use to trap innocent young people, such as deception, false promises, and fraud. He identified ignorance, illiteracy, greed, poverty, insecurity, and instability as the underlying push factors that make individuals vulnerable.
Mr Offiah disclosed that NAPTIP has successfully arrested and prosecuted numerous traffickers, with many now serving jail terms. He advised the students to remain alert and not succumb to the ploys of traffickers.
He added: “NAPTIP is implementing the Schools Anti-Trafficking Education and Advocacy Project (STEAP) with the International Centre for Migration Policy Development, in collaboration with the Delta State Ministry of Education. Our aim is to ensure that human trafficking is eliminated from our society, especially among school children, who are often preyed upon by traffickers.
“By coming to the schools, we are reaching the grassroots, ensuring students are well informed. When they recognise the red flags, they should report to the authorities, their counsellors, and their teachers. NAPTIP will then respond by rescuing victims and arresting and prosecuting the perpetrators.”
Members of the newly inaugurated vanguard clubs voiced their commitment to actively participating in the campaign against human trafficking within their school communities.
At the Special Education Centre in Agbor, the Zonal Commander emphasised NAPTIP’s dedication to safeguarding pupils and students, noting that the establishment of the Anti-Trafficking Vanguard Club at the school was a key part of this effort. He urged the students to set an example by resisting trafficking and reporting any suspicious approaches to their teachers and parents.
The Principal of the Special Education Centre, Agbor, Mrs Ezehi Francisca Chukwudi, expressed heartfelt appreciation to NAPTIP and the International Centre for Migration Policy Development for bringing the anti-trafficking initiative to her school.
Similarly, at Ute-Ukpu Grammar School in Ute-Ukpu, Ika North East Local Government Area, stakeholders pledged their full support to ensure the newly inaugurated NAPTIP Vanguard Club achieved its goals.
During the event, Mr Offiah outlined NAPTIP’s five-pronged strategy for combating human trafficking: Protection, Prevention, Prosecution, Partnership, and Policy. He also explained that trafficking typically involves three elements: the act, the means, and the purpose.
Delta State Project Officer for STEAP, Ijeoma David-Ukoko, encouraged vanguard club members to share the knowledge they had gained and remain steadfast in their commitment to the club’s success.
The inauguration ceremonies also featured goodwill messages from the Delta State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, the Delta Taskforce Against Trafficking and Irregular Migration, and other collaborating partners.
Highlights of the events included the distribution of textbooks and notebooks focused on human trafficking and red flags to club members, as well as cultural performances by the students.
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