By: Godwin Abedican

Arua
The police in Arua city on Friday April 1^st 2022, arrested a woman identified as Betty Adakuru, on allegations of deserting a 3 years old child to one Lekuru Christine, after having borrowed money worth three hundred thousand shillings from her on agreement that the later brings charcoal and fire wood from Rhino camp in Madi Okollo district for the former for sale within Arua city.

While asking for the money, Betty alleged that the conditions for sleeping where they get charcoal from are unfavorable with the child and requested that the child remains with Christine and she would be back in two days’ time with her charcoal and fire wood since she is keeping for her the baby.
 However, Betty failed to show up after two days as she had promised though people kept telling Christine that child’s mother has always been sited within the town.
Christine said, two months later, the authorities on hearing that one of her kids had started mistreating this abandoned child in retaliation for her money, questioned her to explain how the baby got to her home. “They told me if I don’t tell how this child came here they would take me to police for stealing a child.” She said.
This prompted the authorities to give her one week to look for the mother of the child and when she failed to get her within Arua city, they ordered her to go up to Madi Okollo to look for the mother of the child where she found her. “When I got her she tried explaining herself to me but all I told her was that, I don’t need anything but yourself because the police want to put me in jail because of your child and they have ordered me to come and look for you. When I told her that, she accepted to travel with me and that is how she ended up in the hands of the police,” Christine narrated.

Ijaga summary, the LC 2 chairperson for Kenya ward and the chairperson for LCs in the Arua central division where the incident took place said that, after hearing that there was a child abandoned in their cell to compensate money borrowed they had to swing into action against the woman who was holding the baby together with her husband to establish the truth.
“ When I went with my team  to see the baby aged 3 years we found the baby in good health condition although the care taker says the baby was handed over to her in a malnourished state.” summary said.
 
West Nile region Child and Family Protection Officer Assstant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Anguyo Jimmy confirmed the arrest saying they are investigating a case of child abuse against her. “The way I am looking at the case, it may turn from child abuse to aggravated child trafficking because, the characteristics and ingredients of child trafficking are really common in this case” Jimmy added.
West Nile region Child and Family Protection Officer Assstant Superintendent of Police, confirms that Betty has marks of cuts with machete (panga) which shows she has been struggling as a single mother, which has prompted the search for the husband.
According to the police, the cases of child neglect is one of the leading crimes in the region with at least 10 cases of child neglect reported per day and at least 3 to 5 desertion cases reported per month.

COVER PHOTO Jimmy Anguyo-West Nile region Child and Family Protection Officer By Godwin Abedican