383 raped in Lagos…497 abandoned babies rescued

Lagos State Government yesterday said no fewer than 383 cases of rape were recorded while 11 suspects were prosecuted and convicted in the last one year.

The government added that it rescued 497 abandoned babies from the streets.

Special Adviser to the Governor on Youth and Social Development, Dr. Dolapo Badru, at a briefing in Lagos, said the cases included one where a father, who impregnated his daughter was prosecuted and later convicted. He added that 4,387 new family welfare cases were also treated.

Badru, who expressed the government's readiness to check the trend, urged anyone with complaints or for rescue mission to call relevant state agencies.

“We are also concerned with the issue of abandoned babies, child abuse/sexual abuse and lack of care for people living with disabilities.”

On the rescued babies, Badru said they were rescued after their mothers abandoned them somewhere as they did not want the children, adding that the babies were taken to government homes and private orphanages.

“With this, the rate at which mothers dumped their new-born babies has increased in Lagos State.”