The Rescue Team of the Lagos State Ministry of Youth and Social Development has rescued and rehabilitated a female American citizen found wandering in the Ijegun area of the state.
The team rescued the woman recently while responding to a distress call to the emergency toll-free line of the state government by a reporter who found the American wandering around the area, a statement said on Monday.
Speaking on the incident, the Commissioner for Youth and Social Development, Mr Mobolaji Ogunlende, said the rescued woman was found in a “depressed state of mind and incoherent as a result of which she was immediately transferred to the Lagos State Rehabilitation Home, Majidun, for necessary treatment and rehabilitation.”
The Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Mrs Toyin Oke-Osanyintolu, also said, “We were deeply touched by the plight of the woman and as the ministry is saddled with the responsibility of giving support to the vulnerable and the needy, we wasted no time in rising to the occasion. For us, every life is very important because social welfare is at the heart of our statutory responsibilities.”
Meanwhile, John Simmon and Charles Adeyemi of the Supervisory Consular Services, United States Embassy in Lagos, visited Oke-Osanyintolu at Alausa on Monday to formally request the release of the woman who would be repatriated to America for reconciliation with her family, the statement said.
Simmon commended the ministry for the rescue, saying, “Who knows what would have become of her if the ministry had not swung into action on receiving the information? Once again, all the efforts put into this rescue mission must be commended. It shows you value every life in the state regardless of the nationality.”