LAWMA officials rescue day-old baby dumped inside garbage bin

Officials of the Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) have rescued a day-old baby dumped in a garbage bin while evacuating waste in Ikoyi.

Benjamin Hundeyin, the Lagos police spokesperson, confirmed the development on Thursday.

He said the LAWMA officials filed a report at the Ikoyi police division after the discovery.

“The officials reported that they were on their routine duty of moving wastes around the Ikoyi area when they discovered the newly born baby wrapped in a polythene bag,” NAN quoted him as saying.

“A police team led by the Divisional Crime Officer rushed to the scene. The baby was rushed to Military Hospital, 81 Division, Dodan Barracks Ikoyi for medical treatment before taking the child to Motherless Baby Home.”

Hundeyin said that for the quick detection by the LAWMA officials, the baby would have died.

He added that the baby is doing fine, noting that an investigation has commenced on the matter.

“Infanticide is a crime and punishable,” he warned.

Section 327A of the Criminal Code Act stipulates stringent punishment for a woman guilty of infanticide.

“Where a woman by any wilful act or omission causes the death of her child being a child under the age of twelve months, but at the time of the act or omission the balance of her mind was disturbed by reason of her not having fully recovered from the effect of lactation consequent upon the birth of the child, then notwithstanding that the circumstances were such that but for this section of this Code the offence would have amounted to murder, she is guilty of a felony, to wit of infanticide, and may for such offence be dealt with and punished as if she had been guilty of the offence of manslaughter of the child,” the section reads.