TWO-DAY SEMINAR ON SAFEGUARDING AND PROTECTION OF CHILDREN AND VULNERABLE ADULTS

Alarmed and distressed by a frisson of uncertainty and worry regarding the swelling news of the abuses of minors and vulnerable adults by clerics, the Universal Church has taken an overtly bold step to prevent the re-occurrence of such acts and to also ensure that justice is duly served to perpetuators of such heinous crimes. Towing that same line, our Seminary Community organized a two-day seminar, with a focal point on safeguarding and protecting children and vulnerable adults. The seminar was held at the Seminary Auditorium, and was well attended by students and Formators. The first half of the seminar was anchored by Sr. Theresa Olaniyan- a seasoned teacher and expert as it concerns the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults. Sr. Olaniyan’s lecture was centred on the types of abuses, the ways children could be abused and how abuses could be prevented. Accompanying her lecture, were the group discussions and presentations by seminarians, with a principal focus on the various facets of abuse. The latter part of the seminar was anchored by Rev. Fr. Charles Ozioko ISCH, J.U.D. Fr. Ozioko used Pope Francis’ Vos Estis Lux Mundi (also VELM) as a background to x-ray the Church’s stand on the abuse of minors and vulnerable adults. He went on to give the overview of the VELM and other documents like the Sacramentorum Sanctitatis Tutela and the Vademecum. He ended by inviting all of us to take precautionary measures in our pastoral activities especially in our dealing with minors and vulnerable persons.