By Cajetan Mmuta
Condemnation has trailed the punishment meted to a nursing mother, Esther Obiechina, by personnel of the Nigeria Navy in Anambra State.
The victim had narrated how some Naval personnel at Uga junction, in the commercial town of Onitsha, forced her to climb the pedestrian bridge at Uga Junction about 30 times.
Obiechina who spoke from the hospital bed where she is recuperating disclosed that the Naval Personnel also confiscated her N1000.00, which was her transport fare back to her village in Orsamala, Ogbaru Local Government of the state, and money meant to buy pap for her newborn baby.
She said her problem started when she crossed the Express Road from the Bridgehead market.
The incident took place on Sunday this week.
According to her, two Naval personnel accosted her and asked her to give them N5, 000.00 to leave her but she told them that she doesn’t have such an amount.
She explained that they later asked her to drop her handset and the N1,000.00 with them and climb the pedestrian bridge 30 times on Sunday, May 2022.
It was gathered that when she finished the corporal punishment, she could not regain herself again as her entire system was disorganized and she fainted.
” I don’t know what was happening to me again. My entire body system started collapsing. In the next few minutes, I passed out,
It was further leaner that even when she fainted, the Naval personnel were not bothered, rather they were mocking her, saying that after pretending she would stand up.
“I heard them when I started regaining consciousness. It was one of them who told them to stop mocking me and that I was not pretending. He later returned my handset without my one thousand nairas” she stated.
She added that after she regained consciousness, she demanded the N1,000 but they told her that the officer holding her money had left, a development that left her stranded as she had no other money.
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She however alerted her boss over her plight, who encouraged her to manage to come to the office so that he would give her back some money for her transport fare.
But when she got to the office she fainted again and she was rushed to St Cyprian Hospital, along Port Harcourt Road, Figge, Onitsha where she is currently recuperating.
Efforts to get the Commanding Officer, Odekpe Naval Post, Navy Commander Sani Abdurayi, failed.
The Human Rights Liberty Access and Peace Defenders Foundation (HURIDE) in a reaction called for an immediate and total overhaul of the Iowa Odekpe Naval Post due to their atrocities against the citizens they were supposed to protect
HURIDE Executive Director, Dede Uzor A Uzor, said there have been a series of cases of abuse of citizens’ rights by the Naval Personnel at Uga Junction.
“He said in the case of lady Obiechina who is a nursing mother, it was wrong and out of the rule of engagement of the military to inflict such harsh corporal punishment on an ordinary civilian, let alone a woman and a nursing mother for that matter.
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“He called on the leadership of the NIgerianNigerian Navy to fish out the perpetrators of the abuse of the heinous rights to refund the one thousand nairas they confiscated from lady Obiechina as well as make them face severe disciplinary measures.
“There are glaring incidences of official corruption, extortion, intimidation, and harsh human rights abuses by the Naval officers, immediately its 6.30 pm, they would mount illegal roadblocks closing down the trunk at Onitsha/Asaba express high ways causing excruciating pains to the motorists, extorting money with impunity.
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“The Commander, Iowa Odekpe Naval officer should be removed to be sent to refresher causes to enable him to be in tune with democratic ideals. Dede Uzor said.
