How they got me pregnant at Imo State baby factory - victim narrates
Nine girls, forced into pregnancy at a ‘baby factory’ in Imo State, yesterday spoke of how they became victims. The nine were arrested by the police yesterday after initially escaping during a raid of the ‘baby factory’.
The
visibly exhausted girls said that they were held against their wish
by the proprietor of the so-called motherless babies home simply known as Madam
One Thousand. The
victims are all from Imo .
They
said their parents were unaware of their whereabouts.
According
to them, they were taken to the ‘baby factory’ by scouts engaged by Madam One
Thousand.
The
scouts include women who go about seeking vulnerable girls.
17-year
old Adaobi Akubueze ,until her abduction a student in Lagos, said she was referred
to the centre by a medical doctor who conducted a pregnancy test on her.
She
said:“The result of the test was positive and the doctor said I should not
abort the pregnancy. He said he knew where I could go and have the child with
adequate maternal care and where the baby would be taken care of until I would
be ready to take charge.
“So
I ran away from home without informing my parents. But on getting to the centre
in Imo State, I was asked to produce my letter of introduction. After that, my
phone was taken away from me and that was how I stayed there till the Police
came and arrested us.”
She
said of conditions in the centre: “We were kept in a crowded room with little
ventilation and a doctor came once in a while to check us. Nobody was allowed
to go beyond the first gate also known as the Green Gate. And one boy who we
referred to as oga came around to sleep with the girls, especially those that were
not yet pregnant.
“The
compound was built in such a way that made escape impossible. It is fenced with
high walls and no visitor was allowed to come into the area where the girls
were kept, except Madam, Oyibo and the doctor.
“After
nine months, those who were due to be delivered were taken to another location
and Madam would only bring back news to us that our friend had given birth. But
they never came back ”.
Another
victim, Chinyere Onwuegbu, also 17, said she was living with her mother, a
widow, until she ran away with one of her friends who convinced her that she
could make a huge amount of money if she could be pregnant and sell the child
after delivery.
Her
words: “My friend brought me here and she told me to stay and get pregnant.
Madam promised to take good care of me and that she would give me N60,000 if I
had a baby boy and N30,000 if it was a girl.
“
But after I was impregnated, Madam began to force me to work hard despite my
condition. I cried everyday but no way to escape”.
From
outside, the ‘baby factory’ looks very much like a pure water production
facility.
It
sits on an expansive land and is walled round.
The
main building has several rooms secured with iron doors.
A
neighbour, who volunteered information on condition of anonymity, said: “All we
saw were people coming to buy water but we began to express worry when we
noticed flashy cars coming to the place at nights.”
Investigation
also revealed that the owner of the ‘baby factory’ also runs a maternity home
where the victims are taken to be delivered of their babies.
Oyibo,
who was identified by the girls as the one who impregnated most of them, denied
that he was paid to impregnate them.
He
said: “I was employed to work in the pure water company, but I have slept with
most of the girls but not to impregnate them as reported.”
Who
is Madam One Thousand?
It
was gathered that Madam One Thousand is no stranger to the police having been
arrested by them at least twice before for a similar offence.
A
source, who asked not to be named, said: “If the police are serious, they can
arrest her; they know her identity. She has been in this trade for a long time.
She even has medical doctors who work for her.
“Apart
from that, since she also runs a registered maternity home, why can’t the
police look in that direction and get her identity from the Ministry of Health
that registered her clinic?”
Sources
said she is at the head of a syndicate that also includes doctors.
The
doctors refer victims to her and get paid accordingly.
Efforts
to get the Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Katsina, and the Police Public
Relations Officer, Joy Elemoko, to comment on what becomes of the girls were
unsuccessful as they did not pick calls to their handsets.
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