In this undercover investigation, a reporter, Sikiru Obarayese, exposed how security operatives abet child prostitution, trafficking and make millions of Naira from the illegal activities in Osun communities. Sometime in early 2021, a 17-year-old girl, Victoria, who came from Southern Nigeria, followed a boyfriend to an Osun community in search of greener pasture. After she was maltreated and sent out on the street by her boyfriend, the teenager met a young woman in an Osun community offering her “woman’s job” with no further explanation about the offer.
Victoria was later invited to Ilesa by a young lady identified as Precious where she would start the “woman’s job” — Vitoria had told Precious, who claimed she is 22-year-old, about her inability to gather fare from Osogbo to Ilesa, in which the lady promised to settle the fare after meeting her at a park. Victoria eventually met with Precious who is a sex worker at Frayo, Itishin area in Ilesa. The brothel is one of the few with high numbers of underage girls trafficked from eastern and northern parts of the country. Child trafficking, according to the United Nations Organization, refers to the recruitment, harbouring, transportation, provision, obtaining, patronizing, or soliciting of a minor for the purpose of exploitation, forced labour, slavery and commercial sex act.
Sex trafficking on the other hand is human trafficking for the purpose of segxwal exploitation, including segxwal slavery, which is considered a form of modern slavery. Though there is no law against prostitution in Nigeria about age or consent, but according to the UN, it is illegal when someone is harbouring, transporting for the purpose of exploitation, or forced labour for commercial purposes. Meanwhile, security operatives in Osun community have been exploiting and benefitting from the segxwal escapades of the little girls. Sources told our reporter that police makes millions of Naira weekly from aiding the act.
These operatives are in cahoots with the owners of the brothel, thereby exploiting, harbouring and obtaining from sex workers. According to findings, the brothels, especially Frayo, have huge patronage due to the high number of underage girls. The owner of the brothel popularly call by the name of the brothel (Frayo), makes about one Million Naira weekly from the girls.
The two brothels under investigation were mixed with aged women and young girls, some of whom are underage. A source who is very familiar with the business said the girls have been trained. “The girls have been trained to lie and they are good at what they do,” the source said. Frayo has over 50 rooms – all partitioned with iron panes. The owner of the facility, it was uncovered, slammed cruel punishment on any of the occupants that goes against the rules.
Traffickers – including some community members – exploit women and girls in domestic service and sex trafficking, as well as boys in forced and bonded labour in street vending, domestic service, artisanal mining, stone quarrying, agriculture, textile manufacturing, alms- begging, and in the tie-dye sector in the northwest and southwest of the country.
Nigeria Police Force has been previously accused of exploiting women in illicit activities. According to a US report on trafficking, “Unlike previous years, NPF reported its officers, arrested two traffickers in 2020, and media noted NPF officers arrested three suspected traffickers exploiting women in “baby factories,” as well as additional potential victims in December 2020 and March 2021 in Ogun and Katsina states respectively.
”Corruption affects all levels of government – including the judiciary, security forces, and law enforcement agencies – and undermines accountability for trafficking offences. Sex trafficking, according to the report occurs in government-run detention centres and IDP camps. “Without providing statistics, observers reported NAPTIP investigated allegations of human trafficking in IDP camps, in coordination with the Ministry of Defense zonal commanders.”
The zonal coordinator of NAPTIP in Osun State, Mustapha Saadu said the agency will carry out an investigation on the brothels. He added that the command had not heard about the said brothels or their activities. Meanwhile, the head of the investigation of the agency in the zone who was in the same room with the coordinator during the visit of this reporter to NAPTIP office in Osogbo acknowledged the “police money”.
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