Residents of Vandeikya Local Government Area of Benue State were thrown into shock after a pair of newborn twins was discovered abandoned in a bush in Mbaaji, Ningev Council Ward.
The infants were rescued by members of a local government task force during a routine environmental sanitation exercise in an area popularly known as Wangbeen Jor.
Chairman of the task force, Daniel Orhembega, who confirmed the incident, said the babies were found after one of the operatives heard a faint cry while on duty.
He explained that upon tracing the sound, the team discovered the twins wrapped in fresh leaves, alongside their placenta and a gown suspected to belong to their mother.
Sources in the community disclosed that while one of the babies was wailing, the other was found asleep, heightening suspicions that they had been abandoned shortly after birth.
The newborns were immediately evacuated to a nearby health facility, where they received urgent medical attention.
Reacting to the development, the Chairman of Vandeikya Local Government, Dennis Terkura Guda, condemned the act, describing it as inhumane and unacceptable.
Guda, who visited the babies at the clinic, assumed responsibility for their care and subsequently named them Guda-Alia (boy) and Alia-Doo (girl).
The twins have since been placed under the care of the Local Government Welfare Department.
Meanwhile, the council boss has appealed to residents to assist with credible information that could lead to the identification and arrest of the person responsible for the abandonment.