From a respected university professor to an oil company executive to a popular television presenter, it is the same story: they leave home and they never return, in what has become a growing statistics of missing persons in our country. But a more sinister dimension was added last week when a 20-month-old baby was declared missing in Abeokuta in the course of a naming ceremony for another baby. He is yet to be found.
Apparently worried by this phenomenon, the Abia State House of Assembly last year passed a resolution calling on security agencies in the state to intensify efforts in securing lives and property of residents of the state. The House, which urged parents to monitor and pay more attention to the movement of their children and wards, further called on the people to always show greater interest and love in matters affecting their neighbours, saying such a gesture would help tackle vices, such as cases of missing persons.
However, while the Abia legislators might have been worried enough to have waded into the issue that has actually become a national malaise, it does not appear as if other critical stakeholders are paying enough attention to the growing plight of missing people in different parts of the country. Almost every day now, there are several reported cases of Nigerians who leave home without ever returning. Records at most of our police stations across the nation, which are in themselves not comprehensive, tell a compelling story of how many Nigerians are now getting missing almost every day with no rational explanation as to their whereabouts.
For the affected families, living through the ordeal of having a relation missing can be a most traumatic experience. The anxiety generated in this situation is far worse than in established cases of kidnapping, wherein the release of victims could be conditioned on the possibility of reaching a deal with the abductors. The trauma of those left behind is even worse than if it were cases of death which at least comes with a closure. Yet at a time the nation is grappling with the challenge of human trafficking, it is worrisome that many Nigerians are leaving their homes and workplaces without coming back.
While the efforts of the Nigerian Police at documenting some of these cases must be commended, they and other relevant authorities must however go a step further to unravel the nagging mystery behind these missing persons and more importantly help to locate their whereabouts. Similarly, members of the public have a lot to contribute in helping the authorities do their job by reporting any case of missing person as well being vigilant to report any suspicious movements of people.
According to the former Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide, a person can only be declared missing officially if he or she has not been seen in 24 hours. “It is only then the matter should be reported to the nearest police station. After reporting the incident, the family members are expected to supply the police with detailed information of the person’s physical characteristics as well as other information that would assist investigation like disclosing the missing person’s close friends, enemies, likely hangouts as well as other general information”, she said.
Available records reveal that while some of the missing persons have been found after some days, weeks or months, sometimes in locations far away from home, others were never found, thus lengthening the anxiety of their family members who would forever wonder: were they kidnapped or involved in road accidents? Were they victims of rituals? Did they suddenly miss their way? Did they step into a dangerous drain hole? Are they dead? Are they alive?
It is important for the relevant authorities to pay more attention to this growing challenge of people getting missing almost every day within our society.
