A consultant paediatrician, of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Dr George Emechebe, on Thursday called on residents of Anambra to beware of paedophiles in their communities, and that the call was necessitated by the increase in paedophilia in the state, adding that Paedophilia is a psychiatric disorder in which an adult experiences exclusive sexual attraction to children or has a carnal knowledge of children. The person who commits the act is called a paedophile and could be either a male or a female, and he treated no fewer than two paedophile cases every month.
He also said that there was a need for cohesive effort to stop the act which is alien to Nigerian culture, saying that, “Victims of paedophiles come with bruises and bleeding from their private parts, having psychological trauma and, most times, contract infections, and “It is expedient for parents and guardians of younger children to be aware of this social ill and protect their children and wards carefully.
“They should monitor their movements and know the people they leave their wards with, ”encouraged parents to report any act of paedophile to the nearest police station and take the victims to hospital for medical check immediately.
Speaking on the same issue in a telephone interview, Dr Lawrence Ikeakor, said the hospital had not recorded such a case, the Chief Medical Officer, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Teaching Hospital, Amaku, Awka, said paedophilia was an aberration and a psychological problem, saying that it had a psychological impact on the affected children, noting that victims, oftentimes, found it difficult to adjust in future.
Okafor said that parents should be careful of the custody of their wards, advising that necessary action should be taken instantly in case anything happened.
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