A 19-year-old girl, Halimah Bello, has accused her father of trying to force her to marry a mechanic, identified simply as Alfa.
Halimah, who fled her home last month, accused her father, Ramon Bello, of chaining her and his other daughters and forcing them to sleep with some men he chose for them as spouses till they got pregnant.
The victim, it was gathered, ran to the Crime Victims Foundation (CRIVIFON) for help, after she fled their 61, Shekoni Street, Coker-Aguda home in Surulere, Lagos State, last month.
In her petition to the Executive Director of CRIVIFON, Mrs. Gloria Egbuji, the victim, a fashion designer, said she was not prepared for marriage and had no feelings for Alfa.
She said: “My father wants to force me to marry a man I barely know. He is an Alfa and a mechanic. He had done it to my elder sisters by chaining them down and bringing men he wanted them to marry to sleep with them till they were pregnant.
“I ran away from home because he wants to do the same thing to me. My father does not listen to anyone. Even my mother told me to listen to my father.
“My father also threatened me that if I refuse to marry the man he wants, I would be subjected to the same treatment like my sisters.
“I know what he is capable of. He fixed a wedding date but I ran out of the house before then. Please, I need my father to be called to order. He should stop this wicked act. I am not even ready for marriage and he should not force me into it.”
Mrs. Egbuji confirmed that the victim came to her office for help, adding that she petitioned the police commissioner for intervention.
She said: “The girl came to my office and said her father was threatening to kill her if she refused to marry a mechanic Alfa he chose for her. She said her father had forced her to the Alfa’s house to sleep there and that each time she refused to go, he would chain her in a room.
“She also told us her elder sisters suffered worse fates in the hands of their father, who brought men to sleep with them while in chains till they got pregnant.
“In the letter to Police Commissioner Imohimi Edgal, we appealed that he should call the victim’s father to order. He should be made to understand that forcing his children to marriage is a crime.
“We also appealed to the commissioner to offer protection to the victim, following threats to forceful marriage and abuse of her rights to liberty and movement.
“The police invited the father at the weekend and he signed an undertaking not to threaten the girl nor force her into marriage.”