By FELIX UKAH

United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) and National Orientation Agency (NOA) have inaugurated surveillance teams trained to ensure abandonment of Female Genital Mutilation(FGM) in seven local government areas of Ebonyi state.

The 7 Council areas included Afikpo North, Ebonyi, Izii, Abakaliki, Ohaukwu, Ivo and Ishielu

The seven L.G.As had earlier denounced the age- long practice, FGM, and traditionally decreed to ensure that no member of the communities go back to the practice after their public declaration.

The communities variously made the public declaration against the before UNICEF and NOA officials who are currently training the surveillance teams they set up to ensure that no member of their communities perpetrate the act after their denouncement.

The communities including Ntezi in Ishielu local government area, Ishiagu in Ivo local government, Okaleru in Ezza North local government among others had selected those that will form the surveillance teams and presented to UNICEF and NOA which is currently training and inaugurating them.

UNICEF Desk Officer at the state National Orientation Agency, Uchenna Unah charged the surveillance team to move into their communities to monitor them and ensure that no member of the communities goes contrary to their decision against FGM.

He further urged them to monitor the birth of new babies in their localities especially the female ones to ensure that they were not mutilated after their birth, describing FGM as evil against God and humaity.

He alleged that the perpetrators of FGM have devised new method of the act including robing Vaseline cream on the private part of newly born baby girls and pressing the private parts of the babies very hard which according to him will destroy the private parts and their dignity of womanhood when they grow up which he said necessitated the surveillance team against the ugly trend.

On his part, the state Director, National Orientation Agency, Dr. Emmanuel Abah explained that the surveillance teams were like criminal investigation unit of the communities.

“This training is a post public declaration activity because after public declaration, everybody have been informed now that this is a problem in their communities.

Then, how do we ensure that people comply? The communities will now on their own inaugurates a surveillance team that will be monitoring the activities of hospitals, health centres, Traditional Birth Attendants(TBAs), the individuals to make sure that they comply with the basic tenets of the abandonment, to make sure that nobody goes contrary to the resolution of the communities against FGM, to make sure that they comply against Violence Person’s Prohibition Law(VAPP law), Child Rights Act.

“These people; the surveillance team are like criminal investigation unit of the community to make sure that nobody goes contrary to the decisions of the community . the good thing about their activities is that they can make correction, if they see somebody who wants to perpetrate FGM, they can stop them and if the person insist they can now make a report”, he stated.

A member of the surveillance team in the Ivo Local Government Area who is the women leader of Ishiagu Development union, charged the team to be tactical in their task of monitoring their communities against the phenomenon and report any case of the act. (Daily Independent)

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