The House of Representatives has called on the Federal Government to declare a national emergency on ritual killings, urging the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Usman Baba Alkali, to step up intelligence, to arrest and prosecute ritual killers across the country.
This resolution was reached following the adoption of a motion by the Deputy Minority Leader, Toby Okechukwu, on the “need to curb the rising trend of ritual killings in the country.”
The lawmaker in his debate said there has been an upsurge of reported cases of ritual killings with increasing cases of abductions and missing persons in different parts of the country.
He explained that in many cases of kidnap, the offenders rape and mutilate victims to obtain sensitive body parts for rituals.
“On January 22, 2022, three teenage suspects and a 20-year-old reportedly killed one Sofiat Kehinde, severed her head and burnt the head in a local pot in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
“Ogun State Police Command on Monday, February 7, reported that one of the suspects confessed he learned the act of ritual killing from a video he watched on Facebook.
“Sofiat’s death has attracted national outrage and condemnation considering the ages of her killers,” Okechukwu added.
He said it is worrisome that while youths in other climes are embracing science and technology, Nigerian youths “seem stuck in the mistaken belief that sacrificing human blood is the surest route to wealth, safety and protection.”
The House also urged the National Orientation Agency, parents, heads of schools, religious leaders and the media to launch a campaign against the menace, and charged the National Film and Video Censors Board to rise to its mandate for all movies produced in the country.
