What were his guardians thinking when they flung their 10-year-old ward, Usen Okon, into the Imo River in the Ikot Abasi area of Akwa Ibom State over witchcraft allegations? Is the river supposed to carry purged him of the witchcraft? or they feel he’s off better dead?
PUNCH
said that a non-government organisation, the Humanist Association for Peace and
Social Tolerance Advancement and its partner, Child’s Rights and Rehabilitation
Network, said that the boy survived and was being taken care of by the groups.
The
Senior Project Manager of the organisation, Mr. Ayobami Ojedokun, said that
Okon was under the care of his paternal aunt, identified simply as Ekaeyen, at
Etebi community in the Esit Eket Local Government Area of the state as his
parents had died.
He
said a few days ago, Okon was aroused from sleep by Ekaeyen who took him to her
husband and asked him to confess to being a wizard.
He
added that when Okon denied the witchcraft accusation, his aunt threatened to
throw him into a river.
Ojedokun
said Ekaeyen, true to her words, on November 16, took Okon to the Imo River and
threw him into the water with the hope that he would drown.
“She actually threw Okon into Imo River thinking
that the boy would drown. The boy came out of the water alive
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