September 22, (THEWILL) — The presence of a seven-year-old girl, Habiba (not her real name), at the Emergency ward of the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH), Bauchi, where she is receiving treatment for first degree burns around her lower body, particularly her private parts, shows how lowly some people can descend in a bid to inflict pain and suffering on fellow human beings.
According to a reports, Habiba, a resident of Magama-Gumau in Toro Local Government Area of Bauchi State, was brutalised by her brother’s wife, identified as Suwaira Ibrahim, who allegedly burnt her private part with a hot knife. Additional reports indicated that the little girl was accused of witchcraft by the sister-in-law through a process that is still mysterious.
A resident of the area, Kabiru Mohammed Abdulkadir, who apparently witnessed what happened, reportedly said, “Zuwaira’s child told her that she saw Habiba amongst a group of witches and she was taken to a man to confirm whether she really belongs to a witchcraft group.
“The man told them that she was not a witch, but Zuwaira disagreed with the confirmation. They returned home from where they went and she heated a knife on fire to burn her private part, believing that if she’s a real witch, she won’t feel pain.
“It was her loud cries that disturbed the neighbours and when we got there, we saw the situation and insisted that the case be reported to police.”
The Bauchi State Police Command has since confirmed the arrest of the assailant, Zuwaira.
However, this is not the first time that a minor has been accused of witchcraft and severely brutalised. A few years ago, in both Cross River and Akwa Ibom States, little children were almost routinely labelled as witches and wizards. They were frequently beaten, tortured, starved and abandoned by their families.
The affected children often ended up in the streets traumatised and without anyone to care for them. A few were fortunate to be picked up by Non-Governmental Organisations concerned about their conditions.
In the past, twins born in southeastern Nigeria were subjected to iniquitous acts of violence. They were considered abominable and were mercilessly killed or abandoned in the evil forest to die. It took the intervention of a Scottish missionary, Mary Slessor to abolish the evil practice. It would appear that these acts of barbarism are still prevalent in our society.
Little wonder, the child-witchcraft syndrome, which emerged from Cross River and Akwa Ibom States not too long ago, seems to be a reappearance of the same degree of ruthlessness that subjected vulnerable children to severe beating, taunting, maiming or lynching in some bizarre cases.
Witchcraft branding of children is a form of child abuse often associated with extreme cruelty and violence. In most cases, affected children are not only abandoned in the streets where they face hardship in the bid to fend for themselves but also exposed to sexual exploitation, drug abuse and crime.
Surprisingly, Bauchi State in December 2023 passed and domesticate the Child Rights Act, 2003.If its officials and relevant agencies are yet to imbibe the message of the Act, Habiba’s case should serve as an opportunity for the state government to do the needful: Its agencies need to embark on a state- wide enlightenment campaign of the citizenry to bring them to understanding of the Act.
We call on the Federal Government to intervene urgently, particularly in the latest case involving seven-year-old Habiba and finally, find a lasting solution to this problem that could potentially hurt the society in ways that have never been witnessed or imagined before.
