The Director General, National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) Julie Okah-Donli, on Wednesday said that the agency had rescued over 12,000, rehabilitated 6000 victims and secured 325 convictions.
Okah-Donli stated this in Abuja when she paid a courtesy visit on Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa.
“”From inception till date NAPTIP has rescued over 12, 000 persons, rehabilitated over 6000 victims and convicted 325 persons.
“”Right now we still have a number of cases in court, we still hope to have some number of convictions before the end of the year,” she said.
The DG also called on the destination countries to prosecute and convict their nationals who aid trafficking in Europe.
“”The biggest challenge to me has been the refusal of the destination countries to prosecute their own gangs, not being able to confiscate the assets and freeze the accounts of the criminal gangs that are based in their country.
“”Most of the time we get the agents not the big traffickers when you are talking about trafficking in Europe, the culprits are the nationals of the destination countries.
“”Nigerians are just the agents, they just help get these girls for little stipend, it is the big traffickers who make the demand for these victims.
“If we cannot get the gangs of the destination countries prosecuted and convicted we are just wasting our time,” she said.
She, therefore, advocated that all the assets of the criminals that have been operating in Europe all these years be confiscated and have the proceeds repatriated to Nigeria.
She also suggested that their bank accounts be frozen, stressing that the traffickers could only be halted “”when you hit them where they will feel the pain”.
The DG also sought the cooperation of government at all levels to halt this trend by taking actions that would reduce vulnerability of people to being trafficked.
Dabiri-Erewa, who commended the passion of the DG for the job, which she said was about saving lives, stressed that her office was ready to partner with NAPTIP to succeed.
““For me it would be a great delight to partner with you because we are dealing with serious problem, we are dealing with victims not criminals because most of the victims are tricked into it.
“”I look forward to working with you to address the situation, which is getting more worrisome, more dangerous and we need to save our youths from this,” she said.
According to her there is need for NAPTIP to have desks in every embassy especially prone areas, where there are victims of trafficking.
““We need to appeal to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to assist in this area to have a mandate desk.
““It is important to have representatives of NAPTIP in these embassies to have immediate result. We need to be demanding from the destination countries that they have to prosecute their own gangs,” she said.
Dabiri-Erewa appealed to parents to watch out for their children and discourage them from venturing into prostitution or seeking for greener pasture where it does not exist.
She said that the present administration was doing a lot to create jobs and ensure that youths are adequately taken care of.