Human Trafficking: FG Launches ‘Not For Sale’ Campaign

President Muhammadu Buhari has said that the nation’s anti-trafficking agency has rolled out the “Not for Sale” campaign to mitigate the deceptions of human smugglers across the country.

The president stated this in an opinion article he published in the Washington Post newspaper to mark the UN-declared International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition.

Our correspondent reports that the UN declared August 23 as International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition.

President Buhari maintained that the ”Not for Sale” campaign was also aimed at helping those who “might be vulnerable to false promises see through the ruse and say no.”

The Nigerian leader, who described modern slavery not simply as a campaign of hatred, but a means of making cheap money, advocated for the review of anti-slavery laws to make it economically unprofitable.

He said, “One distinction from then and now is important: the costs. From records, adjusted for today’s prices, the cost of a human-being-as-property was valued on average at $40,000.

“Today, it is just $90, sometimes even lower. We must remember that slavery is not simply a campaign of hatred; it is the pursuit of profit.

“One way to extinguish it in its current forms, therefore, is to make it economically unfeasible. This means making sure that any anti-slavery laws have a bite, come with strong penalties and are enforced.”

According to him, it is also vital to have a robust tip-off and reporting system.

“Where this once meant detecting ships, today the signs are less conspicuous. The public must be shown how to see what is hidden in plain sight, particularly signs of suspicious behaviour.

“This might seem broad. But vagueness should not give rise to a reluctance to report anything that could be smuggling or forced servitude.

“If something doesn’t look right, report it, for you could be securing another human’s freedom,” he added.

The president noted that the appearance of modern slavery might have changed, but the institution had not.