How Woman Allegedly Used Fake Robbery Attack At Orphanage To Dupe Public
…It’s Against Our Ethics, Asohon President
A woman, simply identified as Iya Legba, has allegedly used fake robbery attack at her orphanage to solicit financial help from innocent members of the public.
The woman, in a video that went viral, was seen lamenting a robbery attack at her Holy Infant Orphanage, Igando, a surburb community area in Lagos State.
According to Iya Legba in the video, valuables in the orphanage was carted away by the armed robbers, but it turned out that what she was saying were all lies as she only wanted to scam people.
In the video, she was seen weeping and raising the alarm that armed robbers had besieged the home, carting away everything in sight, including clothing, electrical fittings, appliances, books, and a mounted plastic water reservoir.
In the video, she also displayed a telephone contact and account number, with which she begged members of the public for cash donations as a form of assistance to the home.
Phone number contacted
When our correspondent called the phone number displayed in the video, a lady who responded and claimed to be the owner of Holy Infants Orphanage said she was out of the Igando premises of the home, but had been informed that state government officials had evacuated everybody from the premises and sealed it up.
When asked which of the government agencies carried out the evacuation, the lady said: “I don’t know exactly, but I am on my way to Ikeja,” she explained, promising to keep our correspondent posted.
Visit to the orphanage
Some neighbours of the orphanage, located at no 3, Alhaji Jimoh Street, Igando, expressed shock and ignorance at the occurrence of any robbery attack at the orphanage.
They however, said they noticed sealed stickers on the gate of the orphanage, indicating that government had picked interest in the matter.
A neighbour who spoke with our correspondent on condition of anonymity said she had not seen the owners of the orphanage in a while.
And is also not aware of any robbery attack in the orphanage as claimed by the alleged owner in the video.
Another residents who didn’t also want her name in print said she only saw the owner, whose real name she didn’t know, once, but that on Friday, when someone came to remove the Home’s signpost at the Alhaji Ede Bus Stop, far away from the orphanage, it showed something was wrong in the home.
Association condemns act
The search for truth about the alleged robbery in the home took our correspondent to Compassionate Orphanage, at Greenland Estate, also in the Igando area, where one Dr. Gabriel Oyediji voiced his association’s disapproval of the conduct of the acclaimed owner of Holy Infants Orphanage home, begging for financial help from members of the public.
Dr. Oyediji who is the National President of Association of Orphanages and Home Operators of Nigeria (ASOHON), condemned the act of soliciting for financial assistance as seen in the video, saying it’s against the code of ethics and conduct of orphanage operators in Lagos and Nigeria in general.
“The law guiding caregiving for orphans and indigent children in Nigeria prohibits the kind of begging in that video, very funny act, we frown at it and we are not going to take it with levity, because someone else may want to do so.
“If we don’t sanction the owner of the home in the video, people will think other operators of orphanages are doing same thing, sincerely it is against our ethics of code of conduct.”
Oyediji also blamed the distance between the government and home owners for a series of negative reports that have become associated with orphanage operations.
“During the era of Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola, we were involved in some of the things they do relating to orphanages. But subsequent governments in Lagos have ignored our pleas to be carried along in the formulation and enforcement of ethical codes for operators in the state.
Holy Infants home have become another scene recently where criminal advertisement and beging for money wanted to tarnish our image, because people will believe that is how we all are, but the reverse is the case.
“The begging for alms is against our ethics and code of conduct. We do not allow our members to go out begging.The government in Lagos State used to help us to arrest them. Even going to the market to solicit for help is against our ethical code of conduct, not to talk of the manner she paraded herself on the social media, it is annoying.
“When the matter was reported to the Lagos State Government, I also visited the orphanage where we met a security guard, who claimed he knows the owner of Holy Infants home, but denied the occurrence of any armed robbery at the home..
“The result of my visit, I think prompted the Lagos State Government officials to know more about the orphanage and the lie about the robbery attack.” Oyediji, however, said, his suspicion became a reality when he was told by the government officials that the home in question ‘had been sealed up since 2018 and that their license had been withdrawn, that they are not sure whether the latest video was a new one or an old one predating 2018 when the home was sealed up for similar offence.
“I have also searched for the home, and I found out that the owner had been jumping from one location to the other.
While the security guard in the next compound said he is familiar with the owner but was shocked when I played the video for him about the armed robbery at the home.
“He said he saw the woman and some other people when they were rehearsing for the video and he went to them and asked if truly there was robbery in the home, but that he was chased out.”
Police not aware
Efforts to get the Lagos State Ministry of Youths and Social Development’s reaction on the matter proved abortive as calls to their contact phone number were unable to connect.
But, the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Benjamin Hundeyin when contacted to confirm the incident said he was not aware of what happened at the orphanage, but promised to get back to our correspondent on the matter if he got any information related to the issue.
