‘If we don’t take our kids seriously, terrorists will’

Mrs Mariam Imoteni had a solemn look on her face, as her eyes ran over the faces of adults, teenagers and kids listening to her with rapt attention in one of the classes at Nigerian Institutes of Journalism, on August 22, Ogba, Lagos State.

She said: “Yemi is an eight-year- old girl who used to be chubby, bubbling and happy. Suddenly she started losing weight, looking like someone who had been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. I called her one day and asked what was wrong with her. She refused to open up to me. One day, someone rushed into my home, screaming that Yemi was bleeding. It was that day we discovered that one of the neighbours had always had sex with Yemi whenever her parents weren’t around.
The man told her that she would die if she told anybody, thus she kept the evil deed to herself !”
 Imoteni is the Liaison Officer of Women in Security of West Africa, Asis International. She was speaking on physically and sexually abused kids, stressing how important it was for parents and guardians to pay attention and notice subtle changes in their children. 
She further cited an example of a mother of three boys, who thought it was safe to employ a houseboy for her kids.
The woman however didn’t know that whenever she and her husband leave home, the house boy would tell the eldest of the kids, who is just six that he wanted to marry him. 
The house boy would call him into his room in order to have sex with him.
He would tell others to go and play. After the third time, the boy decided to tell his parents. All hell broke loose, leading to the house boy, leaving the house. 
Imoteni said: “Parents are expected to create time for their children no matter how difficult it might be! It’s essential for parents to be sensitive to their kids and wards in other to identify the problems they may be facing. Kids should be taugh and encouraged to be bold and to speak out all they may have encountered in other to save their lives at all times.
Parents should ensure they take their primary responsibilities, which is their children seriously, because if they don’t, terrorists are ever ready to take them seriously!” 
Mr. Richard Amuwa is a security consultant, Mega Guards and also Chief Executive Officer (CEO), ‘Project Secure, ’a nongovernmental organisation. He is the brain behind the gathering at NIJ. The project specifically targets youths and kids highlighting the best ways to guarantee their safety and security in the society.
Read More  http://newtelegraphonline.com/if-we-dont-take-our-kids-seriously-terrorists-will/