How 11-year-old house girl allegedly die from beating from her madam

Plateau State Police Command for Nigeria say dem dey investigate di death of one 11-year-old Margaret Joshua afta her madam allegedly beat her and inflict injuries all ova her body.

Di mata come to light afta one good Samaritan, Madam Comfort Moses say she find her dey hide near her house and dem rescue her and carri her go hospital.

She explain to BBC Pidgin say di mata begin on Friday 11 November, 2022. “Na around some minutes to 7:00pm, na im my husband comeback to tell me say im see one girl dey outside and im dey tok to her but she no dey ansa.” Na so Madam Comfort Moses tok as she narrate how she bin discover 11-year-old Margaret Joshua wit injuries all ova her body near her house.

“I go back house but my body no gree me, I get to go outside again to search for her, I still no see her, na di third time wey I go outside to search for her I see her under one building for my house, becos my house dey like upstairs.

She no fit tok she no fit waka. I remove her from wia she dey, cari her go up. I ask her who she be she say her name na Margaret.”

“She come tell me say Mummy abeg I go tell you, give me water.”

Before I go enta kitchen go bring water come, she don use her knee crawl go wia tap dey with two plastic container.

Madam Comfort say Margaret no fit sitdown and she get to cari her for lap, make tea for her make she drink, she no fit drink di tea becos she get wound for her mouth.

“I come dip di bread inside di tea dey put am inside her mouth make she swallow.

Afta sometime my husband call me, ask me wetin we go do about di girl? I tell am to call security.”

“So before we call security I tell her to tell me di truth of wetin happun, she tell me say she get wound for her bumbum, say she dey live with her aunty wey dey beat her anytime wey dem give her work to do and she no fit do am.”

She add say wen her husband wan cari Margaret go police station inside dia car,  she say, “Daddy I no go fit sit for di chair, I get wound for my bumbum,” na wetin Margaret tok.

“I no know say na serious wound, I just tell my husband to cari her go police station, from Police Station we cari her go clinic, di clinic call on Saturday say dem no go fit handle her case, we come transfer her to University of Jos Teaching Hospital, na for dia she die last Monday 14 November, 2022.” She tok.

“As mama wey I be, e pain me say she no survive afta evritin we do, anytin wey di law fit do to make sure say oda pipo stop to maltreat pipo children I go like am.

Before she die on Monday, my husband go check on her for hospital on Sunday, dem say we need buy blood for her say she don lose plenti blood, we buy blood, go back house, On Monday around 11 for morning I cari my baby go hospital for check-up ,na im dem call, tell me say she don die.” Mrs Comfort narrate.

Madam Comfort add say Margaret say she don dey stay wit her guardian for over one year.

‘Na mistake, I dey devastated say she die’

Di suspect and alleged abuser of late Magaret Joshua wey also be her guardian Mrs Nnaemeka Nwachukwu also tok her own side of di tori before police transfer her to State Headquarters.

For interview wit tori pipo for Jos, she explain how she take sabi Magaret and wetin make her di beat di girl evritime before she die.

Mrs Nwachukwu wey get two small children tok for di interview say she dey always beat Margaret anytime wey she catch her dey allegedly masturbate.

“One of my friend connect me to somebody wey bring my house help to me from Kebbi State.

My friend tell me say dia condition dey bad and dem need help, but I no meet her mama and papa, dem send her to me, na later I get dia contacts and dem dey call me too.”

Mrs Nwachukwu add say she complain to di girl parents di next time dem call to check on dia daughter but dem beg her make she no send her back, make she keep her discipline her as her own pikin.

She add say even though she tell dem say she no go fit, as dem know say she wan send her back all dia phones dey switched off and she no fit reach dem again for more dan three months.

“Yes I dey beat her but na anytime I catch her dey masturbate wen she suppose dey do work.” She tok.

She add say even though she dey beat her di incident wey cause her death na mistake and na accident.

“On dis particular day, I get hot water wey hot well-well inside bowl, I bin wan use di hot water soak towels, sake of di tin wey she dey do I dey para for her well-well so I come dey beat her, as I dey beat her, she dey move go back, I dey follow her too, as she dey move go she come hit her leg for di bowl by mistake come fall inside di bowl… Before I go raise her up her bumbum don burn di skin don peel comot.” She tok.

Mrs Nnaemeka Nwachukwu say afta di incident she call her husband immediately make dem cari di girl go hospital, but her husband delay im no come quick.

“As we dey wait for my husband she come tell me say she wan go piss, afta dat time I no see her again, I check evriwia I no see her, I no fit go far sake of my oda children, wen my husband come back im follow me dey find her too but we no see her.

Di next day we go police station go report dem tell me say na till 48 hours, but I tell dem say I dey worry sake of di open wound wey she get and I know wetin go happun if infection enta dat wound. “ She claim.

Mrs Nnaemeka claim say she no see di girl for two days, she no eat, she no drink, she just go hide under dia neighbour house and na di neighbour wey later rescue her.

 “My husband tell me say some pipo call am say make im come identify one girl if na she we dey find.

She claim say wetin happun na accident and she suppose travel in two days time afta di tin happun. She say na di run wey di girl run na im complicate di mata if not dem for don dey treat her.

“As she take sneak out in di twinkle of an eye I no go fit explain am, until dem find her, becos our neighbour wey find her report to police first, me sef go report to police, my husband go hospital so dem detain me for police station.

According to my husband, she bin dey respond to treatment, im tok wit her, she dey eat.

 “I no know say she go die, she sef no know say she go die, wen my husband tell me say she don comot from emergency ward to normal ward, I happy sake of say she don dey out of danger, my husband even tell me say she ask for Ice cream, Akara, I dey devastated as she die” She tok.

We dey see plenti cases of violence against underaged children – Human Rights Commission

Plateau State Coordinator of di Human Rights Commission, Grace Pam tell BBC Pidgin say dem just dey wait make police finish dia investigation den dem go cari di alledged abuser Mrs Nnaemeka Nwachukwu go court.

“We dey wait make police investigate di mata finish den we go cari her go court, we bin interview her before dem transfer di case to SCID headquarters.

Grace Pam tok say plenti cases of Human Rights violation and child abuse especially for under-aged children dey come dia dormot evritime.

“We dey get complaints like dis evritime, even though dem neva lead to death like dis one wey happun recently.”

“Cases of violation and abuse of children, some na physical some na psychological, different forms of abuse especially wit under-aged children.” She tok.

She add say dem don do plenti sensitization for local goment areas but e be like say dem need to do more.

“We dey tell dem to born children wey dem go fit take care of and make dem no dey send dem out to do house help jobs sake of say na from dia dem dey abuse dem, especially di under-aged ones.”

“Wit all di sensitization wey dey do, dis abuse and violations still dey increase, we come dey tink say maybe na di katakata for some parts of di state dey cause am.

Di katakata dey pursue pipo from dia villages and to dey run comot wit children from one place to anoda no easy, sometimes dem go give out dis children, we feel say na one of di tins wey dey contribute to dis mata. Some pipo go come say dem wan help you hold or take care of di pikin dem.” She tok.

She say dem dey report to police and ministry of justice about all di child abuse, gender based and domestic violence cases for dem to prosecute.

Dem also get informants for clinics and hospitals wey dey tell dem if cases like dis come, na from dia dem hear di Margaret mata too, she explain.

“Na one of our informants call us, unfortunately before we rush go di hospital she don die.”

‘We go make sure say Margaret get Justice’ – Police

Tok-tok pesin for di Plateau State Police Command Alfred Alabo tell BBC Pidgin say police go do evritin to make sure say di late Magaret get Justice.

E also confam to BBC Pidgin say di suspect Mrs Nnaemeka Nwachukwu dey dia custody and investigation dey go on.

“We don arrest di woman, we don do preliminary investigation at di divisional level and we don transfer her to di State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID).

From SCID afta dem conclude di investigation as Commissioner of Police Bartholomew Nnamdi Onyeka give instruction, we go charge her to court.”

Oga Alfred beg world pipo make dem no dey fear to report dis type of cases, im no happy say afta di sacrifice wey good Nigerians like Mrs Comfort and her husband do to rescue di girl wey dem just see for wia she dey helpless, come cari her go hospital and also report to di police, di girl die.

“Di Command no happy, di Commissioner of Police dey call evribody say make dem no keep quiet wen dem see dis kain tin.

Some pipo go tell you say if we come report police go tell us to write statement.”

“Off course we need di statement, becos na your testimony we go tender for court as witness statement, so dat e no go be like say police just dey pick pipo and accuse dem of sometin.

If pesin report any case, di pesin need to show cause, if dem want make we protect dem we fit give dem witness protection, we go do am, If you no want make pipo sabi you, we go also do am.” Alfred tok.