The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has expresses its solidarity with victims of child labour scattered across the globe.
This is contained in a statement issued by NAPTIP’s Acting Director-general, Alhaji Abdulrazak Danger, to commemorate the 2016 World Day against Child Labour in Abuja on Sunday.
Danger reiterated the commitment of the agency to collaborate with other stakeholders around the world to end child labour.
He said Nigeria had a fair share in the several millions of children victims of child labour across the globe, having been deceived and lured out of their homes by criminal gangs and greedy parents.
He explained that victims of child labour suffer varying degrees of misfortune, inhumane treatments, psychological and emotional harm.
The others were physical torture, socio-economic violence, sexual abuse and harmful traditional practices that undermine their natural development as human beings.
According to him, their worth and dignity are destroyed, their lives are made worthless and with no hope on sight.
Focusing on this year’s theme “Child Labour and Supply Chain’, Danger stressed the need for labour inspectors to be more diligent in their activities.
The director-general urged the inspectors to ensure that no child was found working in plantations, quarries, manufacturing firms and other places where children were placed under harmful situations.
According to him, the negligence of parents to their children and their greed which pushes the children out should no longer be tolerated in Nigeria.
He said that children were gifts from God and parents were under obligation to take care of these children until they come of age.
He expressed regrets that many people now take delight in making their children bread winners at very tender age while they feed fat on the sweat of those children.
“That is evil and must be stopped. I urge Nigerians and people around the globe to show solidarity and support in preventing this horrible crime and human rights violation.
“Efforts need to be intensified by all and sundry to rid our nation of this menace. We need to take the crime of child labour seriously as that is the first step toward its eradication.
“Victims of child labour need our empathy and support to put an end to this.
“I pledged the resolve of the agency to work harder to ensure that issues of child labour and all aspects of human trafficking are eliminated in Nigeria.
“This can only be achieved with the cooperation of all members of the society.’’ (NAN )