THE CHALLENGE OF PROSTITUTION

Prostitution among our girls is on the increase. Nigerians must do more to curb the embarrassing trade

They are virtually everywhere: at street corners; behind residential homes; inside their school hostels, in front of highbrow hotels, bars, shops, restaurants and other public places. They are the new female hustlers who debase womanhood without qualms. In the past, they restricted themselves to brothels or isolated public places, but today they are swarming the streets like bees ostensibly trying to bite their victims where it hurts. In short, they are a complete street menace. If you look at their faces, they are mostly young girls some of them from relatively comfortable homes who are within the age bracket of between 16 and 25. Many of them don’t even hustle out of need; it is sometimes out of greed or just for the fun of it. But this decadence should worry all of us as we strive to build a new society that will protect the dignity of our women.

The questions are: How did we get to this sorry state? How come that every evening especially on weekends, young girls who ought to be in their parents homes are shamelessly parading the streets of Abuja, Lagos, Port Harcourt, Enugu, Ibadan and other cities hawking their bodies to any willing buyer? Why has sex become the fad among many students of our institutions of higher learning? Where lies the future of these young ladies of easy virtues?

The worrisome aspect is organised inter-state sextrafficking. These days a lot of young Nigerian girls are being trafficked from one state of the federation to the other just for sex. A research carried out by Sympathy Worldwide Foundation, a non-governmental organisation fighting sex slavery and child trafficking, reveals that most of these young girls were trafficked to Lagos with some big promises of greener pasture, but as the promises become unfulfilled, the girls take to the streets to use the same means to help themselves.

SINCE POVERTY AND UNEMPLOYMENT ARE THE MAJOR CAUSES OF PROSTITUTION, GOVERNMENT SHOULD STOP PAYING LIP SERVICE TO TACKLING POVERTY AND UNEMPLOYMENT

Outside Nigeria it is even more lamentable. The various reports indicate that the largest group of prostitutes from Sub-Saharan Africa is from Nigeria. According to a recent United States Department of State report, out of the 2,500 minors engaged in full-time prostitution in the streets of Italy, 2,300 are from Albanian and Nigeria. Italy has become the capital of Nigerian prostitutes. It is said that four out of every prostitute seen in any Italian street is a Nigerian. Something definitely has to be done about this unsavoury situation that destroys not only our image as a nation but the future of those involved.

Apart from Italy, Nigerian prostitutes have successfully invaded Spain, Germany, Belgium, Austria, United Kingdom and other countries. Nigerians constitute the largest group of prostitutes in Norway. There are over 400 under-aged Nigerian prostitutes in the Netherlands. Majority of these prostitutes are recruited through the human trafficking industry. And most of the victims are unsuspecting young girls who are enticed with promises of good jobs abroad only to be coerced into prostitution.

We therefore call on government at all levels, anti-prostitution NGOs, parents, Churches, Mosques, the police and all relevant stakeholders to take concrete steps in putting an immediate end to child prostitution. Persons trading in prostitution or keeping brothels should be prosecuted according to the law. Men patronising, defiling or seducing our young girls should be brought to justice. Former Edo State First Lady, Mrs Eky Igbinedion and other such passionate stakeholders should intensify their spirited campaigns against prostitution. Since poverty and unemployment are the major causes of prostitution, government should stop paying lip service to tackling poverty and unemployment.

Finally, the family institution needs to be reinvigorated. If parents were at home performing their responsibilities their daughters would probably not have taken to the streets. Prostitution is not our culture. Nigeria possesses an enviable rich cultural heritage which includes living a chaste life and respect for the body. That is why all should join hands in tackling prostitution in our country.