Our children rape us, Imo Christian mothers cry out

By Chidi Nkwopara
Owerri—Christ mothers from Mgbishii, a sleepy
rural community in Ohaji/Egbema Local
Government Area in Imo State, have cried out to the
Catholic Archbishop of Owerri Ecclesiastical
Province, His Grace, Dr. Anthony Obinna, over
alleged attrocities being committed by their sons
and daughers in the area.
The women visited Archbishop Obinna at the Maria
Assumpta Catholic Cathedral, Owerri, where they
complained that they were being raped by their own
sons on daily basis.
“We are raped and molested by our own children.
You cannot come to Mgbuishii and return home
safely because of the crime,” the women told
Archbishop Obinna.
They further said that they had complained to both
the state government and other law enforcement
agents but regretted that they were yet to find
solutions to the atrocities committed by their
children.
They said: “We are angry because government is
not looking at our direction at all. We have been
completely abandoned for years.
Now, we have no good roads, no electricity, no
market and nothing is going on in our place. To
make things worse, we are now suffering from
insecurity.”
Continuing, the aggrieved women also revealed that
their sons take over the roads leading to their
community on each of their market days and rob
people, adding that this explained why people had
stopped coming to buy farm produce from their
market.
No Police presence
While lamenting that there is no police presence in
the community, the spokes-woman, however,
expressed shock that when they report anything to
the police, they ultimately found themselves in more
trouble as they ended up being molested the more.
“Also, each time we report cases to the police and
they manage to send their men at all, the criminals
beat them (policemen) up because they (criminals)
parade more sophisticated weapons than what the
policemen have. We needed police escort to get
here (Maria Assumpta Cathedral) and we will also
need them to go back home,” the women said.
On lack of social amenities in the area, the
spokeswoman said the community had no roads,
primary or secondary schools as well as health
facilities, adding that they had been completely
abandoned by the various tiers of government, even
as they pointed out to the Archbishop that most of
them were already planning to relocate to safer
communities in Rivers State.
“Even the Reverend Father in our place is
complaining and threatening to go away. About two
weeks ago, some reverend sisters visited our place
and were waylaid on the road and robbed. We have
a lot of problems and that is why the women have
come to complain to the Archbishop, who is our
father in the Lord”, the women added.
Responding, Obinna commi-serated with the women
over their plight and pleaded with them not to take
laws into their hands.
While stressing the need for proper upbringing of
children by parents in the fear of the Lord, the
cleric, however, recalled some bizarre things that
are now happening in the society. He prayed and
blessed the women for being courageous enough to
bring the sordid happenings to limelight.