The UK charity, Ibironke Adeagbo Foundation (IA-F) has urged governments at all levels in Nigeria to prioritise security and education of the minors in the country.
The Founder of IA-Foundation, Mrs Ibironke Adeagbo, made the appeal in statement on Sunday in Abuja.
Adeagbo said that there was the need for Nigeria’s huge army of out-of-school children to be given opportunities to return to classrooms.
She said that it was also imperative to ensure that every out-of-school Nigerian child was taken back to the classroom to discourage such kid from participating in criminal activities.
The philanthropist, while reacting to the uproar arising from the arraignment of some minors in a Federal High Court in Abuja on Nov. 1, urged the Federal Government “to tamper justice with mercy”.
The minors were arraigned for allegedly participating in an anti-government protest in August.
The minors were among 76 people arraigned for participating in the #EndBadGovernance protests in some cities in Northern Nigeria.
“IA-Foundation is deeply concerned about the arrest and prolonged detention of 76 individuals, including 27 minors, who were participating in the #EndBadGovernance protest,’’ Adeagbo said.
Citing reports, Adeagbo said that people arrested during the protests had been held for over 90 days without appropriate consideration for their age and wellbeing.
“We urge the government to immediately conduct dental age assessments on all the detained children to determine their ages.
“If the detainees are confirmed to be under 18, they should be transferred to juvenile correctional facilities as stipulated by law.
“Furthermore, these minors should be granted access to education while in detention as required by Section 250 of the Child Rights Act,’’ she said.
Adeagbo pointed out that the Act explicitly mandated that detained children should not be deprived of their right to education.
“It is apparent from the children’s malnourished condition that their basic needs have not been adequately met during their detention,’’ she said.
She said that one of the root causes of the kids participating in the protest was lack of access to education, which made them vulnerable and available to participate in the protests.
“We urge government to provide immediate educational opportunities to those who are out-of-school in various states of the federation.
“These children deserve a fair chance to a better future. Denying them education will further perpetuate the circle of vulnerability facing them,’’ she said.
IA-Foundation was founded in 2019 with a focus to ginger the government, corporate bodies and individuals to find a lasting solution to the problem of out-of-school children in Nigeria.
The country currently has an army of out-of-school children, standing at about 18.3 million – the highest in the world, according to estimates by UN agencies.