The Lagos State government says it will intensify security measures around Badagry division to curb reported cases of child theft and trafficking.

Bimbola Salu-Hundeyin, Secretary to the State Government (SSG), disclosed this on Wednesday after the state’s bimonthly security meeting in Lagos.

Mrs Salu-Hundeyin said child theft emerged as one of the major security concerns discussed during the meeting, particularly around the Badagry axis.

“One of the touching ones is child theft, people who steal other people’s children, go and sell them, and this is so sad,” she said.

She said one woman involved in a reported case had been charged to court and as such, she can’t discuss details of the incident.

“She even has a kind of clinic. She does it in conjunction with her husband,” Mrs Salu-Hundeyin said.

According to her, reports presented at the meeting indicated that most reported child theft activities occurred around the Badagry axis.

She attributed the concentration partly to Badagry’s status as a border community, which could make it easier for criminals to escape.

“We now know that we have to put more security lights in that area,” the SSG said.

Mrs Salu-Hundeyin said the government was examining available data to determine why the criminal activities were concentrated in Badagry.

She said the analysis would help the government identify appropriate measures to address child theft and trafficking in the affected communities.

The SSG said the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) had been asked to provide accurate statistics on reported cases.

She said the statistics would cover convictions, pending cases and locations where incidents occurred to help establish the trend.

According to her, reliable data would enable the government to better understand the pattern and strengthen its response to child theft and trafficking.

She said relevant ministries and agencies, including the Ministries of Youth and Women Affairs, were coordinating efforts to tackle the menace.

“When we are talking of children, we are talking about the future of the country, the future of the state.

“It is very saddening that people will do that to innocent children, and so we are not taking it easy,” Mrs Salu-Hundeyin added.

The SSG said the state had changed its security meetings with heads of paramilitary and security agencies from quarterly to bimonthly.

“It’s no more quarterly. It’s bimonthly now. We meet more often because we realise that security issues are so important,” she said.

Mrs Salu-Hundeyin said the more frequent meetings would enable the government to monitor security developments closely and respond to emerging threats.

She said the meetings were also designed to strengthen security coordination at the grassroots level and identify challenges before they escalated.

According to her, the state also held meetings with local government secretaries, who would engage community development committees (CDCs) and associations (CDAs).

She said the government was equally engaging the Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC) to address security concerns through wider community participation.

Mr Salu-Hundeyin said security remained a priority of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration, which was committed to keeping Lagos safe.

She said the administration’s approach to tackling insecurity was aimed at ensuring residents could conduct their activities without fear.

On road safety, Corps Commander Kehinde Hamzat, Lagos Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), announced stronger measures around Kara Bridge.

Mr Hamzat said the corps would deploy palliatives and additional safety measures to ease traffic challenges arising from ongoing construction around Kara.

He said the measures would also address traffic challenges linked to activities along the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road.

Mr Hamzat said FRSC would collaborate with other traffic agencies and the police to intensify public enlightenment on road safety.

He listed drunk driving, speeding, overloading and driving under the influence among the offences targeted by the enlightenment campaign.

The sector commander said the corps would deploy additional recovery vehicles and ambulances to strengthen emergency response around the affected areas.

 (NAN)