The news says: A woman in Benin has allegedly thrown her 5-year-old child into a river after a seer told her the child was a python. She claimed that after giving birth to the child, she was unable to conceive again, and the child had not been able to walk since birth. Based on the seer’s advice that the child was the cause of her infertility, she disposed of the child in the river.

Who are the people involved in this tragic incident?

The mother: a woman in Benin (name not disclosed). The victim: her 5-year-old biological child (who could not walk since birth). The seer: an unidentified spiritual advisor who allegedly told the mother the child was a python. The community: residents of Benin where the incident occurred. Authorities: yet to be named (police or social welfare expected to investigate).

Where did this happen?

Benin, Edo State, Nigeria. The child was thrown into a river – location not specified.

What did the mother do?

She allegedly threw her 5-year-old child into a river. She claimed that after giving birth to the child, she could not conceive again. The child had not been able to walk since birth. A seer told her the child was a python and that if she did not get rid of the child, she would either continue giving birth to children with the same condition or never conceive again.

When did this happen?

The incident is recent – the exact date is not specified in the provided text.

Why is this case significant?

Because it exposes the dangerous intersection of superstition, desperation, and child abuse. A mother, driven by infertility and misinformation, allegedly killed her own child. The seer’s advice – that a disabled child was a python – is not just false. It is deadly. This case is a wake-up call about the harm that unregulated spiritual advisors can cause.

How did the mother justify her actions?

She believed the seer’s prophecy that the child was the obstacle to her having more children. She saw the child not as her offspring but as a curse. Her desperation to conceive again overrode her maternal instinct to protect her child.

5 tragic truths from the killing of a 5-year-old child over a seer’s prophecy.

1. A disabled child was dehumanised and labelled a “python” – not a human being. The child could not walk since birth. That is a medical condition – cerebral palsy, spina bifida, or another disability. But the seer did not diagnose a medical condition. He labelled the child a python. That is not just wrong. It is dehumanising. A child with a disability is still a child. Still human. Still deserving of love, care, and protection. The mother saw the child as a curse, not as her flesh and blood.

2. The mother’s desperation to conceive again overrode her maternal instinct. She had one child. She could not have more. That is painful. Many women in Nigeria face infertility stigma. But infertility does not justify murder. The mother chose a potential future child over her living, breathing 5-year-old. That is not rational. That is not cultural. That is a crime.

3. The seer’s advice was deadly – and he should face consequences. The seer allegedly told the mother that the child was a python and that she must get rid of it to conceive again. That is not spiritual advice. That is incitement to murder. If the mother is arrested, the seer should also be investigated. He is not a victim. He is an accomplice.

4. The child was thrown into a river – a slow, terrifying death. A 5-year-old who cannot walk cannot swim. Cannot escape. Cannot call for help. The child was thrown into water and left to drown. That is not a quick death. It is terror, suffocation, and helplessness. The child’s last moments were confusion, fear, and pain. No child deserves that. No child.

5. This case exposes the failure of child protection systems in Nigeria. Where was social welfare? Where was the community? The child was 5 years old. He had a disability. He was visible. Yet no one protected him. No one intervened. The mother was struggling. The seer was advising. The child was suffering. And the system was absent.

How this affects Nigerians.

i. It highlights the dangers of unregulated spiritual advisors. Anyone can claim to be a seer, prophet, or spiritual healer. There is no licence. No oversight. No accountability. Some provide comfort. Others, like this seer, provide deadly advice. Nigeria needs regulation of spiritual practices – not to ban religion, but to prevent harm.

ii. It shows the stigma of infertility and disability can lead to tragedy. Infertility is blamed on women. Disability is sometimes seen as a curse. The mother internalised that stigma. She believed she was cursed. She believed her child was the curse. That belief cost a life. Society must change how it talks about infertility and disability. Shame kills.

iii. It underscores the need for mental health support for struggling parents. This mother was not evil. She was desperate. She believed a lie. She needed counselling, not condemnation. Nigeria has almost no mental health infrastructure for parents of children with disabilities. That must change.

iv. It raises questions about community responsibility. Did neighbours know the mother was struggling? Did family members see the child’s disability and the mother’s desperation? Did anyone offer help? Communities cannot look away. A child is dead. Silence is complicity.

v. It calls for stronger child protection laws and enforcement. Child abuse and infanticide are crimes. But laws mean nothing without enforcement. The police must investigate. The courts must prosecute. And social welfare must identify at-risk families before tragedy occurs.

Advice from this analyst.

1. To the Edo State Police Command: arrest the mother. She has admitted to throwing her child into a river. That is a confession. Also, investigate the seer. He incited the act. If he is found culpable, charge him as an accomplice to murder.

2. To the Edo State Ministry of Social Welfare: this case is a red flag. How many other parents of children with disabilities are considering similar acts? Conduct community outreach. Identify struggling families. Provide counselling, financial support, and respite care. Prevention is cheaper than prosecution.

3. To religious and traditional leaders: speak out against this. Condemn the killing of children based on spiritual labels. Educate your followers that disability is not a curse. Infertility is not a punishment. Seers who give deadly advice are not men of God – they are criminals.

4. To the National Orientation Agency (NOA): launch a public awareness campaign on child rights, disability, and infertility. Use radio, television, and social media. Teach Nigerians that children with disabilities deserve love, not death. That infertility is a medical issue, not a spiritual curse.

5. To the National Assembly: consider legislation regulating spiritual advisors. Not to ban religion – but to create accountability. If a seer, prophet, or healer gives advice that leads to death, they should face criminal charges. Freedom of religion does not include freedom to incite murder.

Rhetorical question for you.

If a mother can throw her 5-year-old child into a river because a seer called the child a python – and she believed that killing her child would allow her to conceive again – what does that say about the state of mental health, spiritual regulation, and child protection in Nigeria?

It says all three are broken. The mother needed psychiatric help – not a seer. The seer needed regulation – not impunity. The child needed protection – not neglect. The system failed at every level. One child is dead. How many others are at risk? The answer is too many. This case is not an isolated madness. It is a symptom of systemic failure. Until Nigeria addresses mental health, regulates spiritual advisors, and enforces child protection laws, more children will die – not by accident, but by belief.

Akahi News reports that a 5-year-old child is dead. Thrown into a river by his own mother. She believed he was a python. She believed killing him would let her conceive again. A seer told her so. The child could not walk. He was disabled. He was vulnerable. He was 5 years old. And no one saved him. The mother is alive. The seer is free. The child is gone. That is not justice. That is not tragedy. That is failure – of family, of community, of state. May the child’s death be a wake-up call. But wake-up calls only work if people wake up. Nigerians must wake up. Before the next child is thrown into the next river.