Metro
Bimbo Ogbonna’s death: Group warns Lagos Police against intimidation of her family
***Decries 12 hours arrest of grieving Mother, brothers
A frontline advocacy group against Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) – Men Against Rape Foundation (MARF) has warned the Lagos State Police Command to desist from being used to intimidate and harass the mother and brothers of late Bimbo Martins Ogbonna at the instance of her husband, Ikechukwu Ogbonna.
Bimbo, documented by some respected anti-domestic violence non governmental bodies and activists as a victim of Intimate Partner Violence, died after she reportedly sustained 95% burns in the house. It was alleged that rather than rescue her, her husband opted to video record her inside their locked apartment and this has led to him being charged for negligence leading to her death.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Monday, Executive Director of MARF, Lemmy Ughegbe decried the arrest and intimidation of Bimbo’s grieving mother, Mrs Ebele Comfort Martins and her brothers at the instance of Mr. Ogbonna.
“It is laughable that Ogbonna alleged that Bimbo’s mother stole $20,000 USD from his house when
“On the 24th day of December, officers of the Lagos State Police Command arrested the grieving old mother of Bimbo and her two sons at the instance of Mr. Ikechukwu Ogbonna who claimed that she stole $20,000 belonging to him from his apartment on the same day that Bimbo was gutted by fire.”, Ughegbe noted.
He said Ogbonna’s claim is laughable because upon news of his wife’s death, he immediately made a voice note recording, explaining that he did not abscond on the day of the fire incident, but left to seek financial assistance from his friends and associates to enable him pick Bimbo’s hospital bills”, Ughegbe stated.
“While we concede the right of the police to investigate allegations of crime, no citizen should be unduly detained on flimsy allegations, which lack credibility and iota of evidence like the one made by Mr. Ogbonna upon which the police had to detain the old woman for twelve solid hours”, Ughegbe stated.
According to him, the allegations made by Ogbonna leading to the arrest of the trio was a study in contradiction and on the face of it the police ought to have been dismissed within a few minutes of interrogating them.
“You all will recall that after Mr. Ogbonna came out of hiding and handing himself over to the police who had been on his hunt over his alleged role in the fire that burnt his wife and led to her death, he claimed that he went to meet friends and associates to raise money for her medical bills”, he recalled.
“How can the same man who wrote in his statement at Panti Police Station and on Instagram that he didn’t have money for her hospital bills and that was why he went looking for financial support from friends and associate, suddenly wake up to claim he had $20,000 in the house, which was stolen by his mother in-law?”, Ughegbe quizzed.
“An impartial police would easily see through this tissue of lies and not keep the old woman in detention for twelve hours. Instead, the police played dumb and allowed themselves to be used as tools to harass and intimidate the grieving family”, he stated.
He said “to detain an old grieving woman on the eve of Christmas for 12 solid hours without any deference to her age or the fact that she has just lost her daughter and is traumatized by the circumstances of that loss is totally unacceptable, reprehensible and condemnable.”
Obviously the police are in dire need of emotional intelligence as they have shown by this assault against the grieving family that they lack emotional intelligence and the knowledge of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) associated with losing a child or a sister as in the instant case.
He called on the Inspector General of Police to call the Lagos State Police Command to order in order not to have the reputation of the police, which he has been working hard to clean up, muddied further.
Meanwhile, the Investigation Unit of Make A Difference Initiative headed by Comrade Jacob Edi had ran a check on Ogbonna and found that he has been in dire straits financially for quite some time.
Mr. Ogbonna even had to sell some choice Wrist Watch to offset various debts he owes people.
A check on estate also shows it is gated and access cannot be granted any visitor or family member into the estate without the permission of a resident.
However, the Investigative Unit of Make A Difference Initiative can confirm that the time any member of the family visited the scene of the incident was in the company of the Police at Panti and Ikechukwu to conduct Forensic, Fire Report and to take some of the children’s clothing.
Human rights activist and lawyer Deji Adeyanju has issued a scathing response to comments made against him by Nyesom Wike, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) minister and former Rivers State governor. Wike had recently accused Adeyanju of being jobless, noting that the activist once sought his support in a bid to become the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national publicity secretary.
During a press briefing in Abuja on Friday, Adeyanju didn’t hold back, describing Wike as “a bully and a coward.”
He went on to criticize Wike’s character and political approach, saying, “Wike has never worked anywhere in his life. He is a serial betrayer. The only difference between Wike and Portable is that Portable does not betray people who have helped him.”
Adeyanju praised Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara for his recent actions against Wike, saying, “I commend Governor Fubara for dealing decisively with him. That’s how to deal with tyrants. Wike is nothing without politics.”
He further expressed his concerns over Wike’s influence, stating, “The reason why he is making so much noise and constituting a nuisance all over the place is because of our political patrimony that he loots. Clowns and charlatans like Nyesom Wike will open their mouths and criticize true activists.”
Adeyanju also highlighted the importance of citizens participating in politics, saying, “Wike wants everyone to leave politics to rogues like him. His idea of nation-building is where people like him control everything. All citizens of conscience should get involved in politics.”
The back-and-forth between Adeyanju and Wike highlights ongoing tensions within Nigerian political circles and has sparked discussions about the role of activists and the nature of leadership in the country.
***Emotional Farewell as Nigeria Mourns a Dedicated Military Leader
Amid deep sorrow and heartfelt tributes, the late Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. General Taoreed Lagbaja, was laid to rest on Friday at the National Cemetery in Abuja.
His burial concluded two days of solemn funeral rites that began in Lagos, marking the end of an impactful military career.
The casket bearing Lagbaja, draped in Nigeria’s green and white, arrived at the cemetery around 3 pm following a funeral service at the National Christian Centre in Abuja.
His body was lowered into the earth at 4:41 pm after a ceremony lasting over two hours.
The event was attended by numerous dignitaries, including President Bola Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima, Acting Chief of Army Staff Lt. Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, Chief of Defence Staff General Christopher Musa, Defence Minister Abubakar Badaru, and other high-ranking officials.
President Tinubu, paying tribute, called Lagbaja’s appointment one of his most significant decisions and announced a posthumous national honor of Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR) for the late COAS. He urged the military not to lose hope: “Please, do not let death defeat us, and as Commander-in-Chief, I renew my pledge that the country will always support you and your families.”
General Musa, the Chief of Defence Staff, echoed this sentiment, calling Lagbaja’s passing a call to strengthen the military’s resolve.
“Let us ensure his sacrifice continues to guide us as we defend this nation. We are resolved to defeat all enemies of the state, whether within or outside,” he stated.
Acting COAS Oluyede expressed personal gratitude for Lagbaja’s mentorship, sharing that he had nominated him for a national honor even while facing illness.
Lagbaja’s funeral rites began with a service of songs at the Army Headquarters Garrison Parade Ground, Mogadishu Cantonment, on Thursday, following the arrival of his body at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport from Lagos.
Lt. General Lagbaja, born on February 28, 1968, served as Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff for over a year, having been appointed by President Tinubu in June 2023. He passed away on November 5 after a brief illness, leaving a legacy of dedication and patriotism.
A civil society group, Good Governance Alliance – Nigeria (GGA-N), has condemned the Lagos State government following an alleged invasion of former Transportation Minister Admiral Festus Porbeni’s Lekki property by state officials on Friday morning.
They called for immediate action against alleged breach of court order on Admiral Festus Porbeni’s property.
According to the group, the invasion is in direct violation of a Federal High Court order and sets a dangerous precedent for lawlessness.
In a statement issued by GGA-N representative Nathaniel Obasi, the group reported that officials from the Lagos State Special Task Force forcefully entered Admiral Porbeni’s property at Wole Olateju Crescent around 7:30 am, accompanied by heavily-armed mobile policemen.
Obasi noted that the task force allegedly beat, arrested, and detained several individuals on the premises, placing them in a police vehicle known as ‘Black Maria.’
The statement emphasized that this raid contradicts a Federal High Court injunction prohibiting any disruption at the property and disregards a recent Supreme Court ruling granting federal control over inland waterways and adjacent lands within 100 meters.
Despite Porbeni’s possession of a Federal Certificate of Occupancy, the Lagos State Task Force allegedly threatened to bulldoze structures on the property, sparking concerns over escalating conflicts between state and federal jurisdiction.
GGA-N therefore urged the Chief Justice of Nigeria, the Inspector-General of Police, Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and federal agencies overseeing waterways to intervene, asserting that the Lagos State government’s actions could lead to “lawlessness and chaos.”
According to him, the disputed property was previously invaded in 2021.
Obasi claimed that at about 7:30am this Friday, officials from the Lagos State Special Task Force, illegally forced their way into Admiral Porbeni’s property at Wole Olateju Crescent, Lekki, despite the Federal High Court order, which barred any agent from entering the premises or harassing any person at the premises.
It added the Lagos State Special Task Force accompanied by heavily-armed mobile policemen, beat up, arrested and threw staff and other people met on the property into a police vehicle called ‘Black Maria’, which they brought “for the illegal raid”.
“The officials who cordoned off the area are now threatening to bulldoze all structures on the property, in brazen breach of the Federal High Court order (FHC/L/CS/1384/21).
“The actions of the Task Force is also in disregard of the landmark ruling of the Supreme Court in January which affirmed the federal government’s exclusive control of the country’s inland waterways and all lands within 100 meters of all declared federal waterways in Nigeria.
“The question is despite Admiral Porbeni being in possession of a Federal Certificate of Occupancy (CofO), how is the Lagos State Government allowed to flout not only an injunction from the Federal High Court but also a ruling from the Supreme Court?
“The Lagos state government’s brazen disobedience of court orders is a recipe for lawlessness and chaos. We draw the urgent attention of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Inspector General of Police, the Governor of Lagos State and relevant federal government agencies in charge of federal waterways in the country to the illegal raid and occupation by the Lagos State Special Task Force,” Obasi stated
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