Why abandoned children were evacuated - Eunice Thomas

Written by EKONG INYANG                                  Eunice Thomas

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The immediate past Commissioner in-charge of the Ministry of Women Affairs, Mrs. Eunice Thomas penultimate week shaded more light on why government took some drastic steps to evacuate the 471 abandoned and branded children scattered all over Eket in AKS.

 In a 32 minute chat that revealed most bizarre things about those bodies that laid claims to the custodianship of the disadvantaged children, the former Commissioner told Weekend Insight that the government’s via her ministry then, decided to most swiftly against those bodies parading themselves as ‘care givers’ to the vulnerable children whereas their real intention is to safe guard their individual pockets.

Mrs.  Thomas - an amiable woman, mother and very Godly entity then said “The journey to reclaiming and relocating the 471 children started when the ministry received calls, SMS, letters from well placed individuals, organizations and even SOS from the children concerned.

For instance, a website called AK Global Forum on witchcraft has this on its page, ”witch children cry out “Stepping stones Nigeria has failed us”, she told weekend Insight adding that even reports and other investigations by the ministry revealed that those children camped at the now defunct Qua River Hotel and the stadium by Stepping Stones Nigeria were given N300  each, every two days as feeding allowance.

Weekend Insight learnt also that aside the N300, those disadvantaged children were also receiving free condoms to promote sexual immortality amongst them.

Investigations carried out by this reporter showed that already amongst them exists a pregnant teenager that the authorities have apprehended the man responsible for the act.

But the immediate past head of the women ministry Eunice Thomas asking rhetorically wished to the “Who are SSNCEF’s sponsors and where do they get their financial assistance from?

Again, she would like to know how an organization priding itself as a covering for helpless persons would allow those it supposes to protect to sleep under tippers arguing that at another place “the house SSNCEF placed the children did not even have a roof of its own”.

“The questions arising from this are, “how much do you make on each of them and who has been your sponsors? Mrs. Thomas asked wondering if it was proper for any organization to feed fat on the vulnerability of innocent children deprived of their rights by their parent’s insensitivity.

On CRARN, the soft spoken mother of four said “CRARN director has not been in office for five (5) months now and has not even paid his staff for the period. There’s no fence and the toilet facility no corpse could be placed in there. The general living condition of the evacuated children was abysmal and to say the least appalling”. Mrs. Thomas fumed.

She informed Weekend Insight that given the scenario above, the ministry did not have nay other choice than to move in swiftly and taken possession of those children and I have to thank His Excellency, Chief Godswill Akpabio for extending the most sincere support for the cause of the children.

“He did not spare anything. From the facility the children are camped to the environment, there’s absolutely no way anybody can void his “governor’s willingness to give these lovely children a meaningful existence.

“We are only doing what was and is still expected of us. (Myself and the permanent secretary Barrister Mrs. Mary Ewa) have and will not do anything to hurt any individual talk less of using the machinery of government to subdue a man out of his right. Go forbid! “She said in an attempt to answer to the allegation that the government forcefully evacuated the children without the consent of the organizations primarily responsible for the children upkeep and welfare.

However both CRARN and SSNCEF had at different fora and platforms held media chat to acknowledge  government’s kind gesture on the children while pledging to work with the Ministry of Women Affairs in actualizing government’s goals in that direction.

Meanwhile all efforts by Weekend Insight to get the SSNCEF programme Director Mr. Lucky Imo Inyang to speak on the issue were unsuccessful as Inyang on several occasions avoided the meetings arranged by this reporter.
Taken from


Weekly Insight Newspaper