A
39-year old Nigerian woman has burnt a girl’s thighs with hot iron after
accusing her of stealing her N1,000 at Oshodi area of Lagos State.
The
woman, Mrs. Kudirat Isekolowo, who lives at Igbehinadun area of Oshodi,
said she did not know what came over her when she carried out the act.
The
mother of three was arrested by officials of the Lagos State Women Affairs and
Poverty Alleviation, WAPA, and Esther Child Right Foundation and brought to the
Lagos State Government Secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja.
Traders
were close to tears at Oshodi Market where the woman sells clothes, when they
saw how the thighs of the 15-year old girl (name withheld) was seriously burnt,
leaving permanent deep scars on her body.
The
little girl was sent by her parents, who live at Agege area of Lagos, to live
with Isekolowo and serve as apprentice in her clothing shop. She started living
with her in November 2012.
At
the WAPA Ministry, Alausa, there was anger when government officials saw the
deep wounds on the girl’s body, while they described the woman as extremely
wicked and needed to be punished severely.
Apart
from the deep wounds on her thighs, there are also wounds all over her body,
occasioned by constant beating and maltreatment.
According
to the girl, Kudirat accused her of stealing her N1,000 last week, but she
denied stealing the money.
She
said the woman plugged a pressing iron and made sure it was very hot and
pressed it on her two thighs and one of her hands, leaving deep wounds on her
body.
“I
am not the one who stole the N1,000. She said I took it and I denied it. She
plugged iron and pressed it on my two thighs. My parents live in Agege, they
asked me to live with her and learn how to sell clothes as they don’t have
money,” she explained.
On
why there were other wounds all over her body, she said Kudirat usually beat
her with wire. Kudirat admitted carrying out the act, saying that the girl
stole her N1,000.
“She
stole my N1,000 last week and I don’t know what came over me. I know what
I did is bad. I don’t know what happened to me when I did it,” she said.
Kudirat
wept when she knew that she could go to jail for her wicked act. Even her close
friends who came with her felt very bad when they saw the degree of damage to
the girl’s thighs.
Executive
Director, Esther Child Right Foundation, Mrs Esther Ogwu said she got a call
from the founder of Compassionate Women Initiative, Mrs. Mary Olasupo, about a
woman who burnt the thighs of a little girl with hot iron.
“We
moved in immediately with the WAPA officials and arrested her and brought her
to Alausa. At Oshodi market where we arrested her, traders were screaming when
they saw the wound in the girl’s body,” she explained.
Esther
said it is now left for the state government to prosecute her in accordance
with the child right’s law to serve as a deterrent to others.
According
to Mary, the founder, Compassionate Women Initiative, “a woman called me some
days ago to intimate me about the incident. She told me that a woman had an
apprentice, whom she accused of stealing her N1,000 and then used hot iron to
burn her two thighs. That was when I called Esther Child Right Foundation for
help and they came.”
Officials
of the state government have vowed that the woman would be prosecuted and be
made to pay for her callous act.
PM NEWS.
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