Delta resolves 1,325 marital disputes in 10 months

A total of 1,325 marital disputes were settled by the Delta Ministry for Women Affairs, Community and Social Development between January and October, 2013, an official, has said.

The Commissioner in charge of the ministry, Chief Betty Efekodha, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Asaba that the cases were out of the 1,342 it received during the period.

She said apart from resolving the disputes, the ministry had also rendered guidance and counselling services to 62 other families.

Efekodha also said that the state government had established 50 `family courts' across the state to serve as alternative dispute resolution centres.

She said that one of the courts, located in Sapele Local Government Area, had been fully equipped to entertain cases under the Child Rights Law.

The commissioner disclosed that the government was making plans to equip the remaining 49 family courts.

She said that 104 family courts Assessors had been sworn-in in 13 local government areas of the state.

Abortion: 23 teenagers die from native doctors’ concoction

No fewer than 23 teenage girls have been feared killed within the last one year through the use of native concoction for abortion.

It was reliably gathered that teenage girls within some communities in Agbor, Kwale, Isoko North and South who became pregnant and were desperate to do away with the pregnancies, sought the help of local doctors, who prepared and administered the herbal concoctions, which ended up costing them their lives, most times.

Although security agents have arrested several native doctors in the areas over their use of the portions in terminating pregnancies, the increasing number of deaths arising from intake of the portions now poses serious threats to the free medical health services introduced by the administration of Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan, especially for pregnant women.

Checks revealed that teenage girls between 15 and 16 years of age, who have dropped out of school because of the unwanted pregnancies, are seen hanging around communities in Isoko, Kwale, Agbor and Asaba communities, waiting for ‘remedies’ from the native doctors.

The police, through its spokesman, ASP Lucky Uyabeme, have warned that it will no longer be business as usual for the “quacks” who specialise in preparing the concoction for some of the girls, and encouraging them to take them.

A native doctor who refused to give his name revealed that did not want his name in the print, said: “We give them concoction when the pregnancy is just two months and warn them against misuses”. But further investigations revealed that these girls find difficult to check into hospitals, because they fear that they might be ridiculed and arrested.

Information from newsexpressngr.com was used in this report.