Police in Imo State have arrested a secondary school teacher, Mrs. Blessing Emmanuel, for allegedly brutalizing her 12-year-old stepdaughter, Amarachi Emmanuel.
The arrest followed a complaint made by activist and journalist Chidiebube Okeoma at the Owerri Police Area Command.
The abuse came to light when two women, Eunice and Amarachi, spotted the young girl selling sachet water in Owerri with severe injuries.
Okeoma, alerted by the women, posted a video online showing the extent of Amarachi’s injuries, which included machete cuts and other beatings reportedly inflicted by her stepmother.
Okeoma confirmed on Thursday that the girl is receiving medical care at Umuguma General Hospital in Owerri, Imo State. He also reported that Amarachi, whose mother passed away in 2018, has been forced to hawk sachet water by her stepmother since her father remarried in 2019.
The activist said, “Amarachi Emmanuel is 12 years old. Her mother died in 2018, and her father married the suspect in 2019. They live in the Nekede area of Owerri. The girl and her two siblings have been out of school for years now as their stepmother forced them to hawk sachet water for her every day and make returns to her while their mates are in school.
“The girl told me that her stepmom dehumanizes them. They sell sachet water for her from morning till night and mostly go to bed hungry. The latest beating occurred because the girl cooked rice and ate without the woman’s permission. Upon her return, the woman battered her.
“I took the girl to the Owerri Area Command and got the woman arrested immediately. To save the girl’s life, I took her to Umuguma General Hospital, where she was admitted. I have also enrolled her in the Imo State Health Insurance Scheme for vulnerable children in the state.
“I have involved the National Human Rights Commission, Owerri Municipal Council Welfare Department, and the Imo State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development.”
The activist further stated that many human rights organizations have contacted him regarding the case.
“The Owerri branch of the Nigerian Bar Association has also contacted me. Various media organizations are now interested in the girl’s case. The battering of children has no place in the 21st century. The police are investigating, and my request is that the woman be arraigned. The woman turned the girl and her siblings into slaves, simply because their mother is late, and their father is medically unstable.”
Okeoma added that his intention is to get the girl and her siblings off the streets and enroll them in school.
“Currently, they live in a shanty. They will need a decent apartment once she gets back on her feet. Her lips, eyes, vagina, left leg, right hand, and stomach were battered with burns and machete cuts. Little Amarachi Emmanuel needs all of us now. Let us show her that humanity is not wicked. There are compassionate Nigerians all over.”
The state police spokesperson, Henry Okoye, confirmed that the Commissioner of Police, Aboki Danjuma, has ordered a thorough investigation.
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