THE National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, yesterday, accused some parents in Oyo State of allegedly aiding human trafficking in the state.

The accusation was made by the Head of NAPTIP, Oyo State Office, Mr Augustine Akanya in Ibadan while speaking at a town hall meeting of stakeholders organised by Adinya Arise Foundation, AAF.

Akanya said: “Our role is to tackle human trafficking and violence against persons, domestic and international trafficking. In almost 80 per cent of cases of human trafficking that I have treated in the state; parents are involved.

“We have seen situations where a mother sent the child to Libya and the father was not aware. The role of parents in human trafficking is enormous. We should think about it.

“Let me talk about the Middle East, Lebanon, Oman and Libya. Do you know that Nigeria does not have an embassy in Oman? I don’t know what is wrong with us. Our life is even better than in some countries.

“Parents are playing a major role in this problem. Let us ask questions; let us be concerned about ourselves. For many of them, it was their parents that helped them to borrow money from financial institutions.

“We encouraged parents to not allow human trafficking in the state anymore. If you want to travel, go with the necessary documents. Safe travelling is better.”

(Vanguard)