"I decided to do it in retaliation to insults from his mother" Housewife who cut off her stepson genitals confesses
Few weeks after 21-month-old boy Musa was severely mutilated by his stepmother in Kano, Bara'atu Muhammad did same to another toddler. She cut off the genitals of her stepson, 23-day old Buhari Muhammad in Dafe village, a Gbagyi community in Shiroro local government area of Niger State.
The 17-year-old housewife is the second wife of Muhammadu Dauda whom he married four months ago. He had been married to the Buhari's mother for 7 years and he is the first child of the union.
"I decided to do that in retaliation to insults (I’ve been receiving) from his mother. She has been insulting me. Anytime I complained to our husband, he will not take action. That was the major reason I used our kitchen knife to cut off his penis."
Muhammad Dauda denied the allegation, adding that Bara'atu never reported Basira to him and that as far as he was concerned they were living in peace.
"I never heard them quarrelling, I never saw them fighting. My house is intact. There was no division. I treated them equally," Dauda insisted, adding that he was shocked when he heard what Bara’atu did to his son. "She never showed any sign of madness. She is mentally okay."
The baby's mother, Basira, 21, also denied Bara’atu’s allegations. "Ever since she was married and came to the house, I took her as my younger sister. That was why I allowed her to be close to my son. I didn’t know that she was planning to kill my son," she lamented.
Dr. Ibrahim Abdullahi who is in charge of the boy at the IBB Specialist Hospital, Minna, said his penis has already been damaged and shrunken and that there was no way that it can be transplanted to its normal position.
The Niger State government promised to take care of Buhari’s medical bills. The Director of Niger State Child’s Right Agency, Maryam Kolo, said that the state government will ensure Buhari gets the required medical treatment.