Advocates for Children and Vulnerable Persons Network (ACVPN) has called on the Lagos State Ministry of Youth and Social Development to urgently intervene in the case of a seven-year-old girl allegedly brutalised by her biological father and stepmother.
The child rights group is asking the ministry to provide shelter for the girl after spending over three months in the hospital, noting that the girl could not continue to live with them.
Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of ACVPN, Ebenezer Omejalile, asked the Permanent Secretary of the ministry to urgently check the victim, identified as ‘Oladunjoye’, who reportedly suffered severe abuse resulting in speech impairment and multiple lacerations across her body.
Omejalile said the child’s situation was brought to the attention of the organisation on January 22, 2026. She had been receiving treatment at Ayodele Medical Center, where she was admitted on January 20 and remains under medical care.
The organisation commended the hospital for providing care and disclosed that members of the public had also offered support to the child through the facility after learning about her condition.
ACVPN stated that it contacted officials of the ministry’s child development department on January 22 and 25, submitting evidence and requesting urgent protective placement for the child to prevent further trauma.
The group alleged that while the father was initially arrested before the child was taken to hospital, the stepmother is on the run.
He added that the ministry’s attention was drawn initially and they were waiting for her to recover.
He noted that since recovery, the ministry has not provided alternative shelter.
“That officials of the ministry have assured the organisation that the matter would be handled through the Family Social Services (FSS) Annex office in Oko-Oba Local Council
Development Area, but no concrete action has been taken so far,” he stated.
The organisation described its appeal as a “passionate call” for immediate intervention, urging the ministry to ensure the child is placed in protective care and safeguarded from further harm.
It said it was awaiting response from the ministry and expressed hope that authorities would take decisive steps to secure the child’s safety and wellbeing.
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