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The Cross River State Government has issued an apology following public outrage over a viral video showing officials tying up and assaulting young boys during an enforcement operation.
The Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Erasmus Ekpang, while speaking during an interview on News Central TV, expressed regret on behalf of the state, describing the incident as unfortunate and inconsistent with government values on child protection.
“So, for such embarrassment for the state, I think we totally apologise for that, and of course, Cross River State is not known for such, you know, habit of tying of kids. Instead, we love kids, we take good care of them,” he said, adding that the administration is committed to child welfare.
“This administration is very passionate about the child rights… we are children-friendly. Cross River State is one of, you know, about the first states that brought out the boy child through the Ministry of Women Affairs…So, I mean, it’s quite disheartening to see that such situation had occurred,” he stated.
He noted that the state has ongoing programmes aimed at supporting vulnerable children, including education support and welfare interventions.
“This administration is very passionate about child rights… for such embarrassment for the state, we totally apologize for that…”
Cross River Commissioner Erasmus Ekpang says that while measures are in place to rehabilitate homeless children, some have been uncooperative. pic.twitter.com/OGUHbsWW6j
— News Central TV (@NewsCentralTV) March 25, 2026
“We’ve gone around homes to tell parents, bring your children out to school, we’re paying their school fees as a government,” he said.
Ekpang noted that authorities were deeply concerned about the situation involving street children, adding that many of them are engaged in criminal activities.
He further explained that the state is working on rehabilitation programmes to rescue and reintegrate such children.
“Now for these kids, it’s been a problem for us, and I tell you, they’ve been syndicated to robbery, they’ve been doing a lot of drugs, they’ve been raping, most of them, they have females there that have given birth to children themselves, they’ve been into drugs… So the state itself, as a state, is trying its best to see how we can gather and get all these children together to actually rehabilitate them, to actually train them, counsel them, who feed them free and all that.”
However, he admitted challenges in keeping the children within care facilities, claiming many repeatedly escape.
“Somehow we still have escapees, they prefer the streets, and I want to tell you too that these children, some of them actually have parents, some of them actually leave after a while, go home, take their bags to come out to the street, they like the streets and all that. So it’s a difficult thing for us as a state, we’re trying our best to see how we can gather these children together, put them in those facilities, where they always come, break out, and then, you know, escape.”
In the viral video, Ekpang acknowledged that the handling of the minors by officials was inappropriate. “That was the task force… they did mishandle that, they didn’t do that well, it wasn’t nice,” he admitted.
He further explained that the task force operates alongside social services in managing street children, though enforcement methods have now come under review following the controversy.
He stated that further engagement and reforms will be carried out to ensure child protection efforts align with acceptable standards.
