A woman, Tina Idoroyen, has been arrested in Calabar for dipping the hands of her five-year-old daughter in hot water for stealing a piece fish.

Idoronye, a food vendor, claimed that she prepared 19 pieces of fish for her business and went out. She said she met only one piece of fish when she got back. She said her daughter ate the missing pieces.

Idoronye then dipped her daughter’s two hands in hot water as a punishment, with the girl suffering severe burns.

Counsel to Basic Rights Council Initiative (BRCI) in charge of the child’s case, Mr James Ibor, alleged that the mother admitted that the little girl had not eaten before stealing her fish.

“The mother alleged that her 5-year-old daughter stole her fish so she dipped her hands in very hot water, that was how she reacted to the alleged stealing. Meanwhile, she admitted also that when it happened, the child had not eaten, which means she must have been hungry,” Ibor said.

“The woman has nothing: the father of the child abandoned them two years ago, she still has another 8-year-old daughter. They can barely feed and she is owing house rent so if we had not intervened with treatment, immediately, that child’s burnt would have been badly infected.”

Ibor said the matter has not been reported to the police because the child needs the support and care of her mother while in the hospital receiving treatment.

Ibor, who assured that the Idoronye, will soon be handed over to the police for prosecution, explained that the child has been moved from a private hospital to the General hospital in Calabar where a specialist is handling her treatment.

“A crime has been committed and of cause police will have to be notified. She needs to pay for her crime, but we have not taken that decision yet because it will not be proper to do that now. Our commitment now is on the child’s treatment and her mother’s support who have actually been very supportive in staying with the child in the hospital.

“The child still responds to the issue of love to the mother so it will be against the child’s interest if we do that now. We are not immediately available to provide the services, now we want the child to heal reasonable while we discuss prosecution.” (The Guardian)

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