Lagos — In our society, children are not protected from pornography. Video CD and cassette sellers usually display their wares by the roadsides and in the process expose children to pornography materials.

At a point, it degenerated to the extent that open spaces and other public places in Obalende, Mushin, Oshodi, Agege, Ikeja, Ojota and Ojuelegba, just to mention a few, scenes of indecent relationships between men and women in video cassettes were put on display as if the sellers were engaged in a form of exhibition. Certain indecent and obscene materials are equally broadcast and published by the media.

Therefore, without any fault of theirs, under-aged children either returning from their various schools or at home stole glances at such scenes. Other children, whose parents are impoverished to the extent that they could not afford formal education and so are engaged in various forms of hawking, do not have to go far; pornography materials are by the roadsides.

With the ongoing beautification of open spaces as well as war against street trading in Lagos, the practice abated a bid.

However, the sellers still find every opportunity to display these porno stuffs just as the media, especially electronic sometimes throw caution to the dustbins by broadcasting obscene scenes at odd hours when children are still awake and watching television.

It was against this trend that the Lagos State Government placed an Executive Order on the proscription of sales, broadcast and display of pornographic materials in open places, to protect young children from exposure to pornography.

Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Opeyemi Bamidele, restated government's commitment to protect children from reckless exposure to pornographic materials and other indecent contents.

He said: "Governor Babatunde Fashola's Executive Order on the proscription of sales, broadcast and display of pornographic materials in open places was to protect young children from being exposed to pornography, which is inimical to the development of children."

Bamidele explained that the State Government, through its Task Force on Environmental Offences, has stepped up efforts at curbing the indecent exposure of pornographic materials in various bus stops and other public places.

The commissioner, while admonishing parents and guardians on the need to monitor the kind of materials their wards are exposed to daily, equally called on the society at large to complement government's efforts towards ensuring that young children have positive developmental progression to adulthood so that they can become responsible leaders of tomorrow.

"If government can proscribe the sales, broadcast and open display of pornographic materials on the streets of the metropolis, parents, teachers and other social agents must complement such efforts."

Bamidele applauded the recent public condemnation that greeted 'Faaji Plus', a lewd song by St. Janet, maintaining that such overwhelming disapproval would serve as deterrent to other musicians, promoters and producers of similar impure contents.

He noted that media houses owe it a responsibility to the society to refrain from broadcasting and publishing indecent substances. He added that owners of cyber cafes equally need to put under close scrutiny sites young children visit while browsing.

He urged the media to help protect the nation's culture, which is fast eroding as a result of undue domination of foreign contents in our national media.

Bamidele emphasised that more of the efforts to curb exposure of pornographic materials fall within the purview of parents, adding that certain contents of programmes uploaded on cellular phones and foreign films are another avenues where children are exposed to obscene materials.