Most child sexual abuses involve fathers, daughters, Edo govt

The Edo State Government has revealed alarming statistics regarding child sexual abuse, stating that over 70 cases of defilement were recorded between January and July 2026. Shockingly, more than half of these cases were perpetrated by the fathers of the minors, according to the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Eugenia Abdallah.

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Mostly, 50 per cent are abused by their own fathers, with the victims ranging from 2-10 years.

During a press conference, Abdallah detailed that the victims abused by their fathers ranged from 2 to 10 years old. She shared a particularly disturbing case of a 14-year-old girl who is eight months pregnant by her own father. The case came to light when a neighbor reported it, and the girl, in a state of distress, claimed her father was deceased, potentially to shield him.

The commissioner emphasized the state government's dedication to not only identifying but also actively protecting vulnerable citizens. Survivors, she stated, will receive support, and victims will be provided with opportunities for economic advancement. The government aims for its social protection programs to yield measurable outcomes.

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The victims are not merely trained but provided opportunities for economic advancement; and social-protection programmes increasingly produce measurable outcomes.

Separately, the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Kassim Afegbua, addressed security measures, including the ban on motorcycle movement in Benin metropolis. He explained that the ban is a response to rising security concerns, as motorcycles are frequently used in kidnappings and robberies. The Managing Director of Edo State Geographic Information Service, Dr. Innocent Bello, also commented on delays in land document processing, attributing them to the detection of numerous fake application documents.

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We are not pretending about it. The reason why this was done was purely for security reasons, and the kind of reports we get daily have become a security concern to us. People use Okada (motorcycle) to kidnap people, to do robbery.