Security experts in Lagos State have commended the Commissioner of Police, Mr Fatai Owoseni, for advising parents to bring their domestic help to the police command for profiling before employment.
They made the commendation in Lagos on Thursday in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
They urged families to take domestic workers to the police for profiling before employing them as advised by the police boss, stressing that parents and guardians should have updated information about whoever they left their children with.
Mr Mike Enakhaire, a security consultant, said some parents were often desperate to secure house helps, thereby ignoring the profiling aspect.
He said “parents should always consider the safety of their children and take their time to secure the best domestic help.
“If you divert attention to your job at the expense of the safety of your children, you will forget that job when the unexpected happens to them.”
Mr Azeez Olayinka, another security expert with Hallmark Securities corroborated
what Enakhaire said, adding that some parents were not security conscious as they just employed whoever they could get as domestic help.
“We don’t have to wait till something happens; we should take our children’s safety as paramount and take proactive measures in ensuring their safety,” he said.
Mrs Olaitan Adeniyi, a legal practitioner, said parents and guardians should also watch the attitude of their children toward domestic helps even after profiling.
She added that “even when parents have the data of house helps, they should also watch the attitude of their children toward them.
“There is also the need for households to treat maids with some sense of humility
and not to maltreat them so that they would not take it out on children. The installation of CCTV would not save your child.”
A retired security personnel who pleaded anonymity said some parents overlook the importance of profiling domestic workers.
He said “some parents often use religious sentiments or claim that they know a person too well and forget that there is always an insider in cases of kidnap or other crimes.
“One certain thing which parents do not know is that you cannot treat your child equally with a domestic help which unconsciously brings jealousy.
“The domestic help will then begin to maltreat your child in your absence.” (NAN)