Nigerian police provoked anger by stating they'll only "counsel" an Edo father who posted exploitative ob§c£n£ content of his 4-year-old daughter on Instagram, rather than arresting him. Many demand prosecution for potential child abuse.
The Nigerian police have sparked outrage by indicating they plan to "counsel" rather than prosecute the Edo-based father accused of exploiting his 4-year-old daughter by posting ob§c£n£ photos and videos of her on Instagram.
In a statement, Nigerian Police Force public relations officer Olumuyiwa Adejobi said the authorities intend to provide counseling to the parents instead of arresting or filing charges against them for the disturbing social media content sexualizing the young child
The stance drew an immediate furious backlash from Nigerians online. "Counseling??? Excuse me," one commenter wrote. "The girl should be taken from him abeg," another stated. Many questioned how "counseling" could be an appropriate response to the alleged exploitation and potential child abuse involved. "How do you counsel someone who isn't remorseful or sees nothing wrong in what he is doing?" one person asked.
Others accused the police of not taking crimes against children seriously enough. "I guess all the Yahoo boys should be counseled too instead of being jailed," a commenter wrote sarcastically. Some alleged the police were being lenient because the accused is a man. "And you didn't counsel Bobrisky??" one asked, referring to the popular Nigerian male cross-dresser who was arrested in 2022.
A few defended the counseling approach, with one writing "Very good" and another saying "I applaud the police for this." However, they were outweighed by the vocal criticism accusing authorities of failing to protect the young victim.
The deeply unpopular reaction seems to be amplifying calls for the father to be arrested and aggressively prosecuted to the full extent of Nigerian laws around child endangerment, abuse, and exploitation.
