Residents of Karaworo Street, Lokoja, Kogi State, were left in disbelief on Wednesday morning after discovering a day-old baby boy abandoned in a drainage. The shocking incident took place near the Kutepa Juma’at Mosque in the early hours of the day.
Talatu Ibrahim, a 45-year-old resident, who found the baby, recounted the distressing moment to DAILY POST. She explained that she was alerted by the cries of the baby coming from the back of her house. “When I heard the cry of a baby at the back of my window, I rushed outside and discovered a newborn baby boy lying helplessly in a gutter beside my window. It was around 5 a.m. this morning,” Ibrahim narrated.
She raised an alarm that drew the attention of neighbors who promptly assisted in rescuing the baby. The infant was then taken to a nearby elderly woman for immediate care.
Efforts to trace the baby’s mother have been futile. Muhammed Abubakar, the founder of MOHAB People’s Care Foundation, who arrived at the scene, confirmed that attempts to locate the child’s mother had so far proven unsuccessful. Abubakar also disclosed that the Kogi State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development had been notified, and the baby would be handed over to them for proper care.
Later in the day, officials from the Ministry visited the scene and took custody of the baby for further welfare and care arrangements.
