Aug. 28, 2021

A newborn baby boy was on Saturday found dead at the dump site in front of a Primary School in Okaka community, Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa.

According to residents of the area, the baby must have been abandoned by the mother in the night.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) gathered from residents of the area who went early in the morning to dump refuse at the site saw the little baby wrapped in an Ankara clothing, crying helplessly.

A resident, who proffered anonymity, said that the first person that saw the child raised alarm which attracted a crowd from the neighborhood but no help could come as the innocent child was already dying from the cold and the rain of the previous night.

She also said that the child was confirmed dead later as he stopped crying.

Men of the Bayelsa Environmental Sanitation Authority (BESA), who were monitoring the monthly sanitation exercise in Bayelsa, visited the scene of the incident and condemned such ungodly act.

Director of Waste Management, BESA, Mr. Ebitto Alazigha, who led the monitoring team, enjoined residents to always monitor their neighbours on what they took to dump sites.

He said that the authority would put measures in place to check such menace in future.

Chairperson of Gender Response Team (GRT), and founder of Do-Foundation, Dise Ogbise, blamed the ugly development on poverty and promiscuity amongst young girls.

She urged young women with difficulties in taking care of their babies to contact her office rather than destroy innocent lives.

Describing the act as illegal, she warned that if the perpetrators were caught, they would be arrested for murder, prosecuted and jailed.

Another resident, Mrs. Ebimoere Matthew, also criticised such act.

“It’s unfortunate that innocent children are being wasted in Bayelsa because most of the parents of these unfortunate children are not ready for child bearing but go into relationships to get immediate material needs.

“This development is highly commendable.

“Children are blessings to every family, they should not be killed because of poverty mentality.

“Government should take action to forestall future occurrence,” she said.

Police spokesman in Bayelsa, SP Asinim Butswat, confirmed the incident, saying the command has already contacted the sanitation authority to evacuate the corpse of the baby, while investigation was ongoing. (NAN)