Governor of Benue State, Rev. Fr Hyacinth Alia, has promised to join hands with the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, to implement the various counter–trafficking policies to reduce the increasing prevalence of human trafficking and violence against persons in the State.
The governor made the promise at the Government House, Markudi, while receiving a team from NAPTIP led by the Director General, Binta Adamu Bello, who paid him a courtesy visit.
While acknowledging the vital roles of other tiers of government as a component of the sub – national levels in the fight against any societal menace, the Governor commended NAPTIP for its visible presence in the state and assured that his administration would continue to give the required institutional support to the agency to scale up its activities and reduce the vulnerability of the state to issues of human trafficking and violence against persons.
Earlier in her address, the Director General of NAPTIP, Binta Adamu Bello, had commended the governor for his support to the agency through the Markudi Zonal Command and urged its sustenance.
She said, “Through sustained intelligence gathering, inter-agency collaboration, and community engagement, the Command has intensified rescue operations, victim rehabilitation, family tracing, and prosecution of offenders.
“Public awareness campaigns have also been expanded across schools, markets, religious institutions, and media platforms to expose the deceptive tactics of traffickers.
“Benue State is a strategic State that deserves renewed attention in the fight against human trafficking and violence against persons. This is due to the large-scale displacement occasioned by a series of crises witnessed in recent times.
“Your Excellency, the challenges ahead of us are quite enormous, and new initiatives must be developed to ensure adequate resources for the rehabilitation of returnee victims of Human Trafficking and Irregular Migration to mitigate the phenomenon of re-trafficking.”
The Director, Research and Programme Development, Mr. Josiah Emerole, the Commander, Markudi Zonal Command, Mrs. Gloria Bai, and other officers of the agency were on the visit.
