The House of Representatives is making a move to stop operations of illegal charity homes and orphanages, also referred to as ‘baby factories,’ in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The lawmakers are considering establishing a regulatory body to oversee the activities of charity homes and orphanages in the FCT.

The proposal is being made in the Federal Capital Territory Orphanage (Registration and Regulatory) Agency Bill 2020, which is sponsored by Babatunde Adejare. The bill is awaiting the second reading.

According to Adejare, the bill seeks to establish a Federal Capital Territory Orphanage (Registration and Regulatory) Agency to

regulate the establishment and administration of orphanages and homes for neglected children to prevent the current trend towards ‘baby factories’ and other related institutions in the Federal Capital Territory.

The bill, a copy of which our correspondent obtained on Sunday, proposed various sanctions for both the illegal organisations and their operators.

It partly reads,

Any person or organisation that contravenes the provisions of this bill commits an offence under this bill.

Where an offence under this bill is committed by an individual, the person shall be liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding five years or a fine not exceeding N5m, or both. Where an offence under this bill is committed by an organisation, the organisation shall be liable to a fine not exceeding of N10m.

The bill says the proposed FCT agency

shall formulate policies, principles and guidelines for the registration and regulation of orphanages and other related institutions, consistent with national development priorities.

Justin Nwosu

Justin Nwosu is the founder and publisher of Flavision. His core interest is in writing unbiased news about Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. He’s a strong adherent of investigative journalism, with a bent on exposing corruption, abuse of power and societal ills.