The circumstances that led to the death of a two-year-old girl discovered within the premises of a mosque in Ningi, Bauchi State, is heart-rending. According to media reports, the girl may have been raped to death and her corpse wrapped in a cloth and abandoned. As part of the investigation to unravel the culprit, the police have arrested four persons. They include the parents of the deceased, a chemist, and a courier who reportedly brought the victim’s body home.

According to the spokesman of the Bauchi State Police Command, Ahmed Wakili, the persons arrested are the 17-year-old mother of the child, Lauratu Saleh, the 23-year-old father, Abubakar Usman, as well the chemist who provided initial medical aid and a relative who took the corpse to the father. The police said the arrests were made after a thorough investigation.

We hope the police investigation was thorough enough, and those arrested are genuine suspects, as it would amount to a double jeopardy if the parents are merely arrested on flimsy excuses.

While we agree that the parents deserve to be questioned if police investigation showed they were negligent in taking care of the two-year-old child, it would be an overkill if on the premise of mere negligence they are arrested and charged for the murder of their own child, in such a gruesome manner. Such murder by the parents looks most unlikely, considering the alleged circumstances of her death.

We therefore urge the police to take all necessary steps to unravel the rapist, who most likely was responsible for the murder.

Enacting a Child Rights Act

While that in itself may not protect the child, it however provides the parameters and expectations for the protection of children. It particularly highlights the responsibilities of the society and the guardian/parent to the child. Such an act also specifies the punishment, when a child is abused, which puts parents and the entire society on notice, on the expectations and responsibilities owed the child.

It is sad that the communal living which is one of the hallmarks of the African society has eroded so much that adults have ceased to see child care as a community effort. In times past, every adult person who saw a child unaccompanied by an adult immediately assumed the role of a protector, until the parents or relatives of the child were identified. Sadly, what prevails now is a strange uncaring attitude that is not African.

The worst case is the prevalence of the community as spectators who are more interested in taking pictures of incident situations, rather than going to the aide of the victim. With the advent of smart phones, those who should play the Good Samaritan prefer to snap pictures for the social media. This new impediment to communal living and social care for the neighbour must be checked, if our society will not descend into the abyss.

We also call out on the administrators of the mosque, in Ningi, where the child was allegedly murdered. We urge them to also discreetly investigate what happened to the child, and how come their mosque featured in the bizarre incident. They should be willing to join forces with the police to unravel those who have dented the image of their place of worship. Going forward, they should take steps to ensure that their facility is protected as much as possible, from such perpetrators of evil.

The rape and murder of the two-year-old child must not go unpunished. The police and the community affected by the incident must keep track of the investigation until those responsible for the dastardly act are apprehended and prosecuted. That is the only way the society can maintain its common sanity. (The Nation Editorial)