A father has been arrested for torturing his 7-year-old daughter over time.
The Oyo State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Inclusion’s Rapid Response Rescue Team on Sexual, Gender-Based Violence and Child Abuse rescued Antonia Happiness Bassey, 7, who has been a victim of physical abuse, torture and assault by her biological father.
Subsequently, the father, Mr Happiness Bassey, was arrested in Ibadan following a report made available to the Rapid Response Rescue Team of the Ministry on Friday, June 19.
The state’s Commissioner for Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Inclusion, Alhaja, Faosat Sanni, confirmed the incident during a press conference, saying: “We received a report of the incident through a social media handle of someone living in that community on our Rapid Response Rescue Team media platform that one Mr Happiness Bassey who lived at No 20, Joseph Ayantoye Street, Inu koko, Ashi, Bodija, Ibadan, allegedly abused and inflicted injuries on his 7 years old daughter who as a result, has scars and bruises all over her body.
“It was also reported that the father who works as a security man with an undisclosed outfit constantly torture the child for reasons yet to be explained and we also learnt that the mother of the child who is also the wife has travelled to their village in Akwa Ibom State to give birth to another child and left Antonia with her father who subjected the girl to abuse and instructed the poor girl to always tell anyone who asked about the marks and bruises on her body that she fell, as a cover-up story to his evil act.
“As a concerned Ministry, immediately we got the report, we swung into action to rescue the child and equally arrest the abuser for further Investigations at the Anti – Human Trafficking and Child Protection Unit of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corp, Oyo State Command, headquarters office at Agodi.
“The Child has been taken to Oni and Sons Children Hospital at Ring Road, Ibadan for medical examination and treatment, while the ministry has also made adequate provision for alternative care and support for the child, and we are also on contact tracing of the wife to get details about the family.”
