Nigeria’s Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said that the Federal Government plans to inaugurate a national sensitisation campaign against ritual murders.
Speaking on Monday in Abuja, the minister said that the government was concerned over the rising cases of ritual murders by unscrupulous people, most of them very young, who are seeking to get rich at all cost.
According to the minister, ritual killings have assumed a worrisome dimension in the country recent years.
He disclosed that the Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND), an NGO, stated that 150 women and girls had been killed for ritual purposes between January 2018 and December 2021.
“Recently, in Ogun State, four young men, one of whom is 18 years old, murdered their 20-year-old female friend for money rituals.
“One of them said they learnt about using human parts for money rituals from social media.
“Of course, you are also aware of a case involving a female student of the University of Jos who was allegedly killed by her boyfriend for ritual purposes,’’ the minister said.
He also said that the National Orientation Agency (NOA) was already partnering with religious and traditional organisations as well as Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) on the campaign to bring about behavioural change, especially among the youth, some of whom were afflicted by the get-rich-quick syndrome.
The minister urged the media to lend their strong voices to efforts to stamp out the growing menace.
GIK/APA