A 56 years old man, Musa Alhaji have been arrested by the Niger state Child’s Right Agency for setting his 15 year old son, Bello Alhaji ablaze with petrol in Bida for Disrespecting and quarreling his elder brother.
It was gathered that the father returned from work and saw Bello struggling to take over the phone of his elder brother, angered over what he teamed as disrespect, Musa fetched some petrol which he had in the house, poured it on him and set him on fire with a lighter.
It took the intervention of neighbours to save Bello from burning to death but before help could come, he had attained various degrees of burns.
The vigilantes apprehended the father and reported the case to the desk officers of the Childs Right Agency who swung into action by taking the injured boy to the General Hospital Bida and handed over the father to the police.
The Director General of the Childs Right Agency, Barrister Mariam Haruna Kolo described the incident as a discipline that was out of line cautioning parents to note that there is a thin line between discipline and wickedness.
According to her, the offence at which the boy was been punished for was minimal to the punishment he recieved adding that setting someone ablaze is a bizarre way of discipline.
Kolo stated that the father would be evaluated for insanity stressing that a sane person cannot commit such atrocity against his son.
She also said that the boy is responding to treatment but he would be permanently scarred for life adding that he would also go through psychotherapy when he leaves the hospital because the turma may affect him for life
The DG said that the case have been charged to court while the man is still in police custody adding that justice will take it’s due course.
The father, Musa Alhaji has pleaded for leniency as he said he acted out of anger.
He also pleased to be allowed to go home to cater for his family as he is the breadwinner of the family and his 13 children will starve if he is not allowed to go home and work to provide what they can eat.
