ILOILO CITY – The false abductions of teenagers and children in Iloilo province may indicate adolescent or family problems.
“These children may be seeking attention,” said Ann Rapunzel “Rara” O. Ganzon of the Iloilo Provincial Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO).
The Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) has sternly reiterated there were no real abductions but the past two weeks saw several claims of alleged kidnappings in several towns.
There was an alleged abduction of two teenage girls in Janiuay town last March 2. Investigators later found out no such incident happened.
The 13-year-old and 14-year-old girl from the neighboring town of Maasin lied to their parents about their whereabouts. The parents thought the two girls were going to their friends’ house to finish a school project.
Ganzon said that the two teenage girls went to Janiuay from Maasin to meet their boyfriends and ended up having a drinking spree.
Another incident was the alleged attempted abduction of three girls jogging in San Miguel town. This was also a false story.
Ganzon does not want to discount other threats faced by children but she has reason to believe that there’s a deeper psycho-social problems with these children and their families.
She surmised that children are riding along with the false news that’s spreading online.
The PSWDO has coordinated with the Municipal Social Welfare Office and the Women and Children Protection Desk of towns where the false abductions were reported.
Ganzon said these children need psycho-social intervention and probably therapy to help ease their mental health issues.
She urged Ilonggos to stop the hysteria, especially on social media platforms.
Ganzon, along with the police, called on the people to stop sharing false information creating panic and threatening communities.