For Favour, a 17-year-old mother, the tears cannot stop flowing as she narrated her experience in a baby factory – usually an illegal facility housing pregnant women, sometimes against their will, and offering their babies for sale.

“I slept off after I gave birth to my baby and when I woke up, I could not find my child beside me. When I asked about the whereabouts of my newborn baby, a sum of N100,000 was sent to me,” she said, her voice cracking.

Favour and five others shared a similar fate at the baby factories where they were found in Abaren village, Ofada, and on Lagos Street, Mowe in the Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area of the state, both in Ogun State.

While Favour was not lucky as she had barely given birth and had the chance to savour the joy of motherhood before her baby was sold, the others had not given birth before the facilities were raided by the police.

A woman identified as Mrs Florence Ogbonna, and suspected to be the brains behind the syndicate, is reportedly at large, but her daughter, a physically challenged man, said to also be involved and her driver were arrested.

The pregnant teenagers and one 20-year-old woman were reportedly transported separately to Ogun State from Imo, Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Rivers and Ebonyi states under the disguise of securing jobs for them. They were identified as Favour Christopher, 17, from Rivers; Julianah Wilson, 17, from Akwa Ibom; Okechukwu Ifunaya, 17, from Ebonyi, Igwe Blessing, 15, from Imo; Orji Gift, 19, from Imo and the eldest, Gift Etim, 20, from Rivers State.

Sharing her experience, Favour said she was impregnated by her boyfriend, who failed to take responsibility for it. In the process of picking up the pieces, she met a woman identified as Madam Joy, who offered to help her get a job.

Madam Joy reportedly took her to a park and handed her over to a driver, Kenneth Richman, whose job was to take such teenage girls to either of the two baby factories, according to the police. But soon after arriving at one of the baby factories, she was due for delivery. So she was blindfolded and taken to a place, where her baby was delivered.

Favour said, “My baby girl was delivered last Tuesday. I did not see the baby, I was only told. I don’t know the place where I gave birth to the baby. I was taken there at night and I was blindfolded. I left the place the same day my baby was delivered.

“When I asked for my baby, they said I should not worry about it. They said the woman that brought me there was waiting for me at a junction but when I got to the junction, I did not see her, I saw someone else. The person took me to the place where the woman was staying.

“They did not tell me that they had sold my baby; they only told me to send my account details. But since I didn’t have any bank account, I begged a lady there (one of the pregnant teenagers there) to let me use her bank account and the money was sent to her account. She showed me proof when the N100,000 was paid into her account.”

When asked about what she intended to do next, Favour, whose eyes had become puffy from crying, said, “I’m planning to go back to Port Harcourt, Rivers State. I want to go back to school. I dropped out when I was in Junior Secondary School 3.

“I don’t even know the name of the person that sent the money to me. I don’t know where my baby is or the woman that took her. I feel bad about this. I called the boy that impregnated me several times before I came to Ogun State but he did not answer his phone.”

May the secret of these wicked people not be covered. May God continue to expose them.

Amen may God expose them

Evil in the land