HOLIDAY SAFETY: COMMISSIONERS CHARGES PARENTS TO BE VIGILANT

Lagos State Commissioner for Youth and Social Development, Mr. Agboola Dabiri has called the attention of parents and guardians to likely increase in child molestation and abuse during holidays and the need to put in place necessary measures that will safeguard their children and ward from such vices.

The Commissioner gave the advice at a meeting with Owners/Administrators of Day Care Centres in Lagos State held at Adeyemi Bero Auditorium, Secretariat, Alausa Ikeja, with the theme: “Towards Achieving Best Practices In Early Childhood Care In Lagos State.”

The Commissioner stated that the government prioritizes the welfare of children and also recognises the importance of daycare centres in ensuring a saner and prosperous society, especially in nurturing and moulding young ones into becoming good leaders.

He, however, decried the proliferation of such important facility in child development, noting that some are handling the business in an unprofessional manner thereby posing a threat to the overall performance of the trained and certified operators.

The Commissioner said that the government has identified the need for proper registration and capturing of information on Day Care Centres/Crèches into the data bank of the State Government with the aim of standardizing the operations of the various stakeholders.

He said that henceforth, activities of the various stakeholders in child care would be monitored while only certified and trained personnel would be allowed to operate creches and day care centres across the state.

“It is imperative for operators of Day Care Centres to imbibe and implement the principles and content of the Lagos State Child Rights Law in their operations. As Government, we shall continually update operators on all current regulatory policies of the State and also ensure that all necessary safety measures are put in place in Child care services”, the Commissioner assured.

On his part, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Mr. Hakeem Muri-Okunola disclosed that the meeting was in line with the State Governor’s Executive Order on Child Protection Policy which states that all child centre institutions shall be guided by the principles of overall interest and wellbeing of the child, consultation and transparency and early recognition and intervention.

He, therefore, enjoined all the stakeholders to support the move by the government to improve the lives of children through the provision of quality services while also taking cognizance of their interest in compliance with the State Government’s policies and programmes.