Officials of the Lagos State
Government have arrested an
84-year old woman at Lekki
area of Lagos State, Nigeria for
allegedly selling babies while
her orphanage home that
served as a baby factory was
shut.
Mrs. Theresa Marques, the
suspect, who recently suffered a
stroke was arrested and
brought to the Lagos State
Government Secretariat, Alausa,
Ikeja, yesterday in the Lagos
Ambulance Service bus to keep
her in healthy condition.
Officials of the Social
Department, Ministry of Youth,
Sports and Social Development
had first stormed the orphanage
home at Block 380, Jakande
Estate, Lekki on Tuesday and
rescued two new born babies,
two boys and arrested some
young women found at the
orphanage.
She was said to have been
granted license by the state
government some years ago to
operate an orphanage under the
name Ife-Oluwa Orphanage
Home but 84-year old Marques
now runs the orphanage along
with an unapproved Maternity
centre where babies are being
delivered. She also has a school
there.
Following the development, the
state government had revoked
the license of the orphanage
and shut it down after rescuing
some children from the Home.
Officials of the state
government claimed that they
got a tip off from some
members of public that the
woman allegedly collected
money from people before
handing over babies to them in
the guise of adoption.
The act contradicts
government ’s law which
prohibits that money should be
collected before giving out
children for adoption. Also, the
exchange of the babies is
without government ’s notice,
an act that is criminal under the
law.
Senior Special Assistant to the
Governor on Youth and Social
Development, Mrs Busola
Ogunkoya, who led the team
said government was informed
that the old woman was
making money through giving
out of babies to intended
adopters without government ’s
notice.
Unconfirmed reports had it that
the woman allegedly harboured
young men and women who
engaged in sex in order to
produce children for her
orphanage which are then
given out. Marques, however
denied that she collected money
from intended adopters before
handing the children over to
them but confessed that she
asked them for donations
which were in most cases
around N100,000, N200,000,
among others, adding that this
was always done after the
process of adoption had been
completed.
One of the babies rescued from
Mrs. Theressa Marques.
She admitted that some young
girls with pregnancy come to
her for help since they had
nowhere to go, saying that in
such cases, she used to rent
apartment for them and pay for
their ante-natal services and
their delivery.
After they had delivered, she
would then ask the mothers if
they wanted the babies or not,
while those who wanted their
babies were allowed to go and
those who did not want them
would hand them over to her
after they had sworn to an
afidavit that they did not want
the babies.
According to her, it is such
babies left in her care that she
gives out to interested adopters
without government ’s consent.
Two of the new born babies
discovered in the home were
born last Sunday but their
mothers were nowhere to be
found. Marques said their
mothers had gone to court to
swear to an afidavit that they
did not want the children and
after two days, the women had
not still come back from the
court.
A medical doctor was also
arrested at the Maternity
belonging to the octogenarian
and had been detained at the
taskforce office Alausa, Ikeja.
He was caught in a private
room in the hospital with a
young lady half naked, while
himself was scantily dressed.
Children handed over to the old
woman were allegedly sold to
those in need of children
without following
government’s laid down
procedure.
Special Adviser to the Governor
on Youth, Sports and Social
Development, Dr. Dolapo Badru
told P.M.NEWS that lots of
illegality were being
perpetrated by some people in
the state under the guise that
they were operating orphanage
homes.
“ They are giving us bad name.
As people operating
orphanages, they are seen as
part of government. They make
things difficult for people
looking for children in order to
make them cough out some
money. We have been on their
trail for long. ’
“Two different babies with two
different mothers were rescued.
We will get to the root of this
matter, ” he stated.