The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, regrets to have arrested a suspect in connection with organ harvesting in Akwa Ibom State.
This was revealed by the State Zonal Coordinator of NAPTIP, Emmanuel Awhen, during a press conference in Uyo on Saturday on the occasion of the National Human Trafficking Awareness Day 2025 with the theme “Strengthening Communities by Connecting the Dots”.
Eme Ukpabio, who was represented by the Head of Public Information of the agency, said the suspect, although arrested in Akwa Ibom, was not from the state, adding that he had been referred to the mother state.
He also stated that the agency has obtained more than 60 convictions and more than 15 cases are still pending determination in the state's federal courts.
“We've had arrests, I can't count them, the arrests we make, we bring them to the office and when we realize that most of these cases are not really human trafficking cases, we fire them. Those who are arrested, detained in our centers and accused in court are many. We have had more than 60 convictions, between last year and this year we had more than 5 convictions.
“In the arrest we had for organ harvesting, the person involved is not an Akwa Ibomite. So when we have a case like that, we refer it to the parent state where the suspect comes from. Ours is simply to do the job and make a referral to the command that covers the person's status where justice will take its course,” he said.
The zonal coordinator, who noted that organ harvesting has become a booming business in the state, revealed that some clinics and hospitals in Akwa Ibom are engaged in the business of organ harvesting.
He added that “organ harvesting is something that is very widespread now. You may not notice, some clinics in this town, with due apologies to the doctors who are doing legitimate business, there are hospitals in this town that are dedicated to organ harvesting.”
In his speech, the State Coordinator of the Network Against Trafficking, Abuse and Child Labor, Ambassador Paz Edem, who highlighted the emotional and psychological dangers of human trafficking, called for the continued sensitization of communities against the dangers.
He said: “Different forms of human trafficking have been mentioned: sex trafficking, labor trafficking and organ trafficking, among others. The dangers associated with these dangers are first physical danger, violence and abuse, forced labor and the rest of them, then emotional and psychological dangers.
“Therefore, we must also sensitize our communities against these dangers because some of them innocently enter them without knowing it”
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Eno Ime Akpan, in her speech commended the collaborative efforts of NAPTIP and NACTAL in the fight against human trafficking in the state, and commended the state governor, Umo Eno, for establishing the ministry that she designated has the responsibility to improve the dignity of human beings