Kafayat Kareem, a 12-year-old JSS1 student of Canal Secondary School, Orile, Lagos, is in a bad shape. But for the timely intervention of some vigilante members who found her writhing in pain in the middle of the night at Oyingbo market, she would have
died from the wound she sustained after her father flogged her with barb wire.
She was rushed to the Star Clinic at Ebutte-Metta where she said this about the incident: “I live with my parents at 4 Kuforiji Street, Orile. On July 7th, I received severe beating from my father. My offense was that I tried to stop him from beating my mother. My father accused my mother of using his hard earned money to play lotto game and he descended on her and broke her knees.
Despite my mother’s cry for help, none of our neighbors came to her rescue because they are afraid of my father. I could not bear the beating anymore so I begged my father to stop beating my mother. He became furious and pounced on me. That wasn’t the first time he would beat us. On one occasion, I begged my mother to relocate 4 of us her children so we can stay away from our father.
My mother said my father will change but he has gotten worse by the day. My mother is presently on admission at the Charity Hospital at Orile. I couldn’t stand his beating anymore, so I ran away from home to meet one of my mother’s friends at Oyingbo market but I did not meet her. I decided to sleep in the market because I didn’t want to go back home. It was while I was sleeping at the market that some vigilante men came and rescued me.”
Agbodemu Musbau, the secretary of the Vigilante group, Ebutte Metta said the case has been reported at both Iponri police station and Area C police Command but they refused to attend them saying they don’t attend to such cases. He said he has been running around with the girl to get the necessary authority to look into the matter and arrest the father but they have refused to take the case… if d police, dt always claim 2b ur friend, can’t take care of u, even dettol can’t…..