MP warns border areas against human trafficking

Leklebi-Duga (V/R), Mr Joseph Amenowode, Member of Parliament for Hohoe South, has advised border communities to be vigilant to ensure that Human Trafficking and Children's Rights Laws were not abused. He asked members of the communities to expose those who might use their areas as transit points for human trafficking.

Mr Amenowode said this when he interacted with the electorate during his recent tour of the area to elicit suggestions and to also listen to their concerns on Peoples' Representation and Domestic Violence Bills. He said because of the dehumanising nature of human trafficking it was even an offence under the laws for someone to ask his relatives or even his sister's or brother's child to come and stay with him without proper documentation at the Department of Social Welfare. The Memorandum to Human Trafficking Law deplored the age-old practice where parents gave away their children to be looked after by relatives and friends on request.

Mr Amenowode said some of the children were not consulted and were not in a position to disobey their parents' decision to send them to go and stay with people they were unfamiliar with.

This practice, the MP said, had degenerated to children being sold or mortgaged by their parents under false pretences and such a situation needed to be addressed and asked all well meaning people to join hands to fight the human rights abuse of children.

He urged the border communities to be on the look out for any suspicious characters or people travelling especially with children and to report them to the Police.

Mr Amenowode later presented 80 million cedis worth of items bought with his share of the District Assemblies' Common Fund. They included six electric generators, 300 bags of cement, 10,000 exercise books and jerseys, footballs and trophies to schools in Kpeve, Logba, Ve, Have, Nyagbo and Leklebi traditional areas.

The generators were given to schools in communities, which were yet to be connected to the National Electricity Grid to encourage teaching and learning. The communities are Logba-Abayeme, Teikrom, Ve-Kpoetsive, Leklebi-Wobe, Tafi-Koenda and Have-Adzekope.