CHILD TRAFFICKING: THE ALMAJIRI SYNDROME IN NIGERIA

The warder had flanked the ‘STOP’ sign so late that the taxi in a bid to circle a dangerous U-turn almost crushed by the whiskers, some bowl bearing children. I can’t recall exactly, the screech of the overstretched tyres and sympathetic observers which was louder. Just seconds the taxi was brought to a grinding halt, a horde of children oblivious and undeterred by the averted fatal accident swarmed the taxi chanting in unison “Allah kiyaye…a bamu sadaka bissabi lilahi” (Allah forbid…help us with alms in the name of Allah). The driver, obviously unshaken by the incident as I was, threw a token at the kids while I equally did same sitting at the back. You can distinguish them by their dirty, worn out and torn garments; unwashed faces and bodies which have not seen water for days. They are between 6 and 14 years, they would approach commuters bowl in hand and offer prayer for alms. They are the wretched of the earth, they beg to eat because their next meals are uncertain; they live in very deplorable conditions, so they must beg to survive. I wondered how many had died in hunger, accidents and used for sacrifice by ritualists. They lack love and care, some are hardly orphans or homeless but some careless individuals have put them in this condition. They are the ‘Almajiris’. They are found in most states in Nigeria under variously distinct nomenclature and according to local dialect or slang: especially when referring to a miscreant. They are Ocho passenja in the East (tout), Omo Ita (rascal) in the West and Almajiri (beggar) in Northern Nigeria.

Although these children (the Almajiris) are found in major cities in Nigeria, they are more common in the Northern part of Nigeria. Child trafficking in Northern Nigeria is evident via the practice of begging by children .So many are compelled (by parents, guardians and relatives) to indulge in the act under the guise of being Almajiri. According to Islamic scholars ‘Almajiri’ is a misrepresentation of the Arabic ‘Almuharireen’ which means immigrants. It is an ancient tradition where villagers hand over all school age male children to a teacher (Mallam) who would prepare them for learning the basics of Qur’anic education often in a distant location. The local population helps them with available accommodation and surplus or left over food to feed on. Since such left over can never be sufficient, the Mallam orders the pupils to enter the neighbourhood to beg for more food. The lesson in begging for food is part of the training so that they would appreciate how poor people live.

The Almajiri system of education as practiced today in Northern Nigeria is a completely bastardized system compared to the form and conditions under which the system was operating. The rural urban migration of children today in especially Northern Nigeria is another unspeakable form of child trafficking subsumed under the canopy of intensive Muslim religious education –the Almajiri heritage. The Almajiri system, according many observers, has long outlived the purpose it was earlier set to accomplish and therefore needs complete overhaul in order to conform to the exigencies of modern times. Its continuance at this day and age is of doubtful value. The issue has been a worrisome one to most Northern elite because the practice has not only been a source of embarrassment to the region but also blamed for the rise in the number of child beggars in the urban centres in Nigeria.

Reasons for the rising incidence of the 

Almajiris vary. Investigations I conducted revealed that poverty plays a unique role. Most children (both the fake and ‘genuine’ Almajiris on the streets) flock into the cities from villages in search of alms for survival because of the acute and excruciating poverty in the countryside. Another reason why the Almajiri system thrives is the opportunity it affords rural youth to acquire Islamic knowledge and in the long-run learn some trade or skills which brightens their chances of making a living in the cities. Unfortunately, most children hardly complete the process leading to skill acquisition because they drop out in the process and end up as street beggars. Similar to the poverty factor is the view that the cause of the flourishing Almajiri is because some families in the rural areas deliberately send their children to metropolitan areas to cater for themselves due to the inability of such families to bear the burden of providing for their large families. This factor is undoubtedly appropriate in an attempt to understand the Almajiri phenomenon in especially Northern Nigeria where polygamy is pervasive. Many men with no meaningful source of income marry three or four wives, with multiple births from these wives; they end up with fifteen to twenty children or more which their economic prowess cannot shoulder. As a corollary, children from such families who suffer deprivation seek alternative means of survival which may only be found in the easily accessible ‘trade’ of street begging. Begging among children in Northern Nigeria can as well be explained on sheer parental failure. 

The polygamous practice ubiquitous in Northern Nigeria has warranted many people to bear children more than they can cater for. Sending some of these children to other towns and cities to ‘acquire education’ could be a source of economic relief to most parents. In some cases, female children are sent on the streets to engage in petty trade in items like kola nut, groundnut, maize, and assorted condiments to augment the lean income of their families. Such girl children are exposed to countless social hazards like sexual abuse, rape, kidnapping etc. Also, the monstrous problem of corruption in Nigeria has worsened matters. Recent assessments show that corruption is known to be pervasive in Nigeria (Global Integrity Report 2008; Human Rights Watch 2008). Lack of transparency and accountability among public office holders has culminated in the outright embezzlement of hideous sums of public money meant to improve social infrastructure. The result is unimaginable wide scale poverty, squalor and deteriorating living standard of the populace. This has in turn produced all manner of societal ills inimical to stability in Nigeria including communal conflicts, unemployment, armed robbery, begging etc “We are really suffering” recounts one of the kids (in Hausa Language) I interviewed after luring him with a token. “Life is so tough we don’t have enough food to eat or drink, so we have to go out and beg” complained the young lad, “We lost Suleiman last week, Bala is lying there sick” (pointing at a boy asleep) “and Abu, we have not seen him for three weeks now” reported one, “Some of us don’t know our parents” reported another when I asked about their parents. From experiences I gathered from these kids, the Almajiri system toady is deplorable, not only are these children left to fend for themselves at a tender age, the injustices they face on a daily basis is too horrible. Often times they are either killed in road accidents or easily succumb to any of the seriously endemic diseases or epidemics with no one to care for them or give them medical attention. A lot of the Almajiris fall victims of ritual killers and are often times killed or maimed. They live in desperation, hunger, abject poverty and therefore become easy prey to antisocial vices such as religious, ethnic and political clashes. They neither attain the full essence of the Qur’anic education nor the practical skills required to earn a living for themselves. As a result they become a burden and a menace to society. 

It is evident from my analysis that street begging by children is an ominous reality in most parts in especially Northern Nigeria. To reverse these trend I am of the opinion that the state governments, in particular the North, should sincerely be committed to the provision of functional education in the region. Similarly, they must endorse and domesticate the Child’s Rights Act 2003 signed into law in Nigeria in September 2003 because the Act has provisions which says “the child’s best interests shall remain paramount in all considerations” and that a “child shall be given such protection and care as is necessary for its [his/her] well being, retaining the right to survival and development….” By so doing, it will be statutorily binding on the state governments to protect children and foster their welfare in the region. Also, a synergy should be created between Qur’anic schools and Universal Basic Education (UBE) currently implemented in Nigeria. All elementary Islamic schools including Islamiyya and other Qur’anic schools should not be slain on the platform of lethargy on the part of both parents and governments in the area. Doing so will be tantamount to sowing a seed of impoverishment in the children and wittingly or unwittingly superimposing poverty on the younger generation as well as forfeiting human capital development in the north and by extension, Nigeria.

IGBOS AND THE LOVE OF MONEY

IGBOS AND THE LOVE OF MONEY

The word 'Igbo' usually evoke certain feelings among other tribes and races in Nigeria and the world over. These feelings range from contempt, suspicion, distrust, hatred, fear, feelings of love and compassion. However, the most remarkable is for the Igbos to be stereotypically likened to a people not only jinxed and incorrigibly fixated in pursuit of money but also easily taken to the mundane. The popular, incontrovertible and undisputed myth conceived by other tribes is that a typical Igbo man loves money and can do anything to acquire money, even killing his own mother or father. The diminishing status of Igbo in contemporary sociopolitical dispensation coupled with the dearth of leadership and consensus among them has been attributed to the fact that Igbos are now more deeply enmeshed in the money chase. Pundits are of the opinion that the view by Igbo from the mindset of a people whose aspirations are being repressed by the Nigerian state beggar substance, contrarily their major problem is that they are a people given to rapacity and consequently set adrift in the hot pursuit of money.

In fact it is hard to see any shortcoming or mishap of the Igbo that could not be construed to emanate from insatiable quest for money. Perturbed and indeed severely burdened by this uncharitable and vitriolic chants about Igbo and their love for money from colleagues, and being a full-blooded Igbo youth, my conclusion ab initio on why Igbo should be hand-picked for this litany of bashing and accusations, was that owing largely to their resourcefulness, versatility, zeal and tenacity of purpose, the tendency is for other tribes to envy and hate them. Contrarily, a number of experience and developments have invalidated my conclusions.

Ever wondered what the word “Igbo” means or its etymology? Some Igbos for want of an authentic historical record place their origin as part of the lost tribe of Israel while others see themselves as descendants of the Jews , a few allude themselves to The Chinese of the African race. Rev. Father Emmanuel Ede in his book Towards an Igbo Metaphysics notes that “ethnologically the Igbo are an ancient people with a copious supply of versatile common sense and unique capacity for improvisation”. Scholars who have attempted unraveling the contentious issue of who really the Igbos are conclude that the term Igbo has shown itself to be chameleonic, changing its meaning in time and political climate. Irrespective of this, Igbo arguably means “I go before others” or simply “I before others”.

Ever had a deal with a typical Igbo man whether business or anything? Beside being dynamic, republican and audacious, he is even more individualistic, opportunistic, monopolistic, egoistic, self-enthused, self-indulgent, self-centred, self-opinionated and above all obstinate and would not like anything to obstruct his interest especially when it concerns money and accumulation of wealth. Those familiar with the literary concept that a character is the noise of his name, meaning that the name given to a character in a work of art coupled with a number of influence e.g environment determine largely his behavior or life disposition. Therefore expect not a character like Okonkwo or Aguiyi to be a fool or coward because the name carries with it a rhythm of agility and fearlessness. Likewise the money, money characteristic of Igbo is a natural consequence of the name ‘Igbo’. Wherever money is found expect an Igbo man to be there even in the oddest places of the world say Malta, Taipei, Kyrgyzstan, Comoros, Haiti, Bangladesh, Burundi etc, wherever man can live and survive an Igbo man is always there .He is right there on the high seas doing business , either smuggling or adding one plus one to become three.

          Brother-in the-Lord or sister-in-the-Lord, or friendship matters nothing to an Igbo man when it comes to business and money. They are everywhere, there is no market you will not find them: Alaba, Oshodi, Onitsha, Kano, Abuja , the world over. They have the highest number of shops and market stalls in every state capital. They own and run 90% of super markets, tire shops, motorcycle spare parts, retail outlets, building materials both imported and locally made in Nigeria-the list is endless. But what is more alarming is the fetish and aggressive means by which they pursue this money. Recently I entreated a fellow igbo neighbor and a church brethren to help me purchase a laptop since that was his line of business and for sake of trust and safety. To my chagrin my “brother” not only bought a substandard and outdated P3 worth less than I paid for but also ripped me of N15, 000. His calculations were that I knew nothing about computer systems. Similarly a cousin of mine once fell victim of the antics of a fellow Igbo. The usual practice is for an apprentice to be remunerated or settled by his masters after the years of apprenticeship. Only three days to the end of his apprenticeship, his master leveled series of allegation of theft against this young man and subsequently didn’t settle my cousin.

To the Igbo man it is no money no friendship, no money no business. I also discovered that the problem is not only domestic but also international. A number of prominent Igbo men have brought the name Igbo to disrepute for money. Recall the money game between Victor Umeh and Chekwas Okorie both of APGA? Ever wondered why over 50 candidates in the PDP signified interet in being governor of Anambra state in the 2007 elections? Is that possible in the North or West? Surely, “I before others”.

Notice the massive graft and general looting among Igbo governors and local administrators in all Igbo states? The provocative statistics is there to show of Igbo youth who drop out of school in quest for money. In fact Prince Morocco Maduka’s hit ‘’Ego- Money Palava” captures the whole essence of the existence of a typical Igbo man. “Money is his beauty, his house is fine it is money, his wife is beautiful it is money, his car is big it is money”, Therefore he must strive hard to acquire this money by whichever means possible if he is not be labeled a weakling or coward among his peers. A colleague once submitted controversially that why Igbos dominate the catholic church more than the Pentecostal churches is because their sermons emphasize more on riches and material acquisition more than heavenly concerns which is characteristic of some Pentecostal assemblies where Igbos are “obviously unpopular”. 

However are all Igbos money mongers? Though it may be faulty logic to hold all responsible for the sins of one but is there really a difference between the left ear of a rabbit and the right ear of the same rabbit? Undoubtedly an agama lizard in the village will always remain an agama lizard in town?

To be continued………..