A human rights activist, Ebi Robert esq. has petitioned some NGOs over alleged violation of the rights of some juveniles by an Abia State based Church through a letter dated 21st July, 2018.
The letter which was addressed to Prof. Tonka Omorogbe, member, Board of Trustees, Child Rights Awareness Organization, revealed that some persons who are believed to be members of ‘The Liberation Arena and Power-Gospel Church’ had allegedly caught one Amarachi Okereke and her children stealing some items in the church, and in a bid to shame her, made a video coverage of the woman and her three children and uploaded same for the world to see.
Mr. Robert believes that the act by the church had drastically violated the rights of the children, hence calls for investigation into the matter. According to him, “the said act violates the right to dignity of the children which is protected by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, The Child Right’s Law of Abia state and other International Conventions and instruments.
“Children and young persons are considered innocent, and our criminal justice system is careful enough to limit the level of criminal liability of such young ones, and in furtherance of the selfsame policy, young ones who are presumed liable are not even tried in an open court in line with the extant provisions of our laws” He said.
The Petition had copied Mr. Aluzu E. Augustine’s led Patriotism Advancement and Community Orientation Network, the National Human Rights Commission and the Child’s Rights and Rehabilitation Network.
