Akwa Ibom Speaker Was Asked To Pay N500m, To Apologize To Medical Doctor Incapacitated By His Security Men

• Civil rights lawyer, Mr. Inibehe Effiong, has given a 14-day ultimatum to Mr. Onofiok Akpan Luke, Speaker of the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, to tender a public apology and pay the N500million to Dr. David Emmanuel Udo, a medical practitioner.

  • Dr. Udo, who is based in  Akwa Ibom State, was almost tortured to death by two armed security escorts attached to the Speaker for allegedly refusing to give way to Mr. Luke’s convoy. The father of six can no longer walk and has his face badly damaged.

David-Emmanuel-Udo

The lawyer's ultimatum was contained in a four- page letter dated 9 March and obtained by Sammynews4u. Signed by the lawyer, the letter,  which was served on the Speaker on Friday, provided a detailed account of Dr. Udo's grotesque treatment by the Speaker's escorts on June 25, 2016.

The lawyer stated that doctors have advised his Dr. Udo, whose skull and eyes were badly affected by the incident, to urgently seek medical attention abroad.

"Arising from that tragic incident, our client has been traversing different hospitals across the country, including the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Enugu, Enugu State to treat his badly damaged skull and face. Our client’s vision is now blurred arising from the attack, which extended to his two eyes. Our client has so far spent millions of naira to treat himself. Our client has been informed by his doctors that he urgently needs to seek further and advanced medical attention abroad,’’ disclosed  Effiong.

The lawyer has vowed to take the matter to court on behalf of Dr. Udo if the Speaker fails to meet the ultimatum to publicly apologize to and compensate him.

On the day of the incident, said Mr. Effiong, his client, wife, and children were on their way to Eket from Uyo when they drove into a crowd of youths on a procession in honor of a young footballer, who died shortly after securing a contract with a foreign soccer club.

 A traffic snarl ensued, explained the lawyer,  compelling motorists to drive slowly behind the mourners.

 "On getting to the section of the Aka Nung Udoe Ibesikpo Road, where the Cereal Research Institute is situated, our client heard the siren blaring incessantly behind his car. On closer observation, our client observed that the blaring siren car was part of a motorcade/convoy comprising three vehicles. One of the vehicles in the convoy bore the insignia of the Speaker of the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly," said the lawyer. He added that the victim observed that the Speaker was seated at the back of the vehicle bearing the insignia, apparently instructing his security escorts, who are officers of the State Security Service (SSS) and the Nigeria Police Force, to clear the road for the Speaker to pass.

Dr. Udo, the lawyer, narrated further, made efforts to yield the way for the Speaker's  convoy to have free passage,  but his car had been blocked by other vehicles and the mourners.                         

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"While our client was still battling to vacate the road for your convoy, a fierce- looking mobile policeman emerged from the Toyota Hilux van, which led two other vehicles in your convoy, and hit his vehicle with his assault rifle (possibly an AK 47) and proceeded to give our client a brutal punch in the face whilst shouting 'clear the road’. As our client trembled in fear, he received a devastating slap on his face from the same mobile policeman in your escort and became dazed," said the lawyer.

He also explained that the victim attempted to give reasons the gridlock, but was stopped from doing so by an SSS operative, who opened Dr. Udo's door and attempted, unsuccessfully,  to remove the car.           

"The SSS operative continued with the assault on our client by raining blows on his face. He punched his eyes, nose and as our client tried to cover and protect his face from the heavy punches, the erratic SSS operative raised his assault rifle and butted our client in the head and chest until he almost lost consciousness," Mr. Effiong narrated.

Realizing they wanted to kill him, Mr. Effiong said his client tried to move back but was stopped by the SSS official, who knocked him unconscious by smashing a rifle on his head.

"Our client was informed by his wife on the 26th June 2016 at about 12:00 PM at Emmanuel General Hospital Eket where he was rushed to that when the said SSS operative in your convoy thought that he had died, he left our client and opened the front door of the very insignia- bearing vehicle you were seated in, the vehicle and others in your convoy zoomed off and left our client to his fate," added Mr. Effiong.

He recalled that the Speaker phoned Dr. Udo a day after the incident to express sympathy  after reading his post about his ordeal on Facebook. 

"You pointedly told him over the phone that you did not know that our client was a medical practitioner. You told our client that you thought that he was 'one of those hooligans'. You will also recall that you sent your friend and associate, Mr. Leo Umana, to meet with our client in his residence in Eket on Saturday 2nd July, 2016 at about 4:30 PM when you learnt of his critical and deteriorating health condition. The said Mr. Umana never gave our client a feedback," the lawyer told Mr. Luke. When Dr. Udo  demanded the identity and prosecution of the two security men from Mr. Luke, the Speaker discontinued communication.

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SSS Official Has Revealed How They Investigated, Charged Justice Ademola For Corruption, Arms Possession

• A witness in the ongoing trial of a Federal High Court judge, Adeniyi Ademola, has explained how the State Security Service, SSS, conducted its investigations before charges were drawn against the defendants.

• Mr. Ademola is facing trial alongside his wife, Olubowale, who is the immediate past Head of Service of Lagos State, and Joe Agi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria.

  

  Justice Adeniyi Ademola and wife in court

  
  
  
  The witness, Babatunde Adepoju, an SSS official who led the investigations into the alleged offenses committed by the defendants, said he was assigned to the case after a search warrant was executed at the residence of the defendant in October.
  
  Mr. Adepoju explained that he was assigned to investigate the matter following the recoveries made during the search at the residence of the defendants, and other allegations, including those contained in a petition written against Mr. Ademola.
  
  “There was also the allegation that the judge used his position as an FHC judge and his close ties with Senator Ahmed Tinubu to influence the appointment of his wife as head of service, Lagos State.
  
  “My duty was also to conduct follow-up investigations as regards the monetary recoveries in Justice Ademola’s apartment,” said Mr. Adepoju, who described himself as a well-read investigative officer.
  
  He, however, added that Mr. Ademola denied influencing his wife’s appointment, adding that the judge explained that his wife was the most senior permanent secretary in Lagos State at the time of her appointment.
  
  Mr. Adepoju told the court that the recoveries made from Mr. Ademola’s residence included local and foreign currencies in hundreds of thousands, as well as two firearms belonging to Mr. Ademola and another judge, A.R. Mohammed.
  
  According to Mr. Adepoju, the SSS also employed a ballistician who checked the rifles found at the residence of Mr. Ademola during the search in October.
  
  After checking the firearms, Mr. Adepoju said the guns were of the category of prohibited ammunition which could only be licensed at the discretion of the President of the country.
  
  [Nigerian_SSS]
  
  He added that although Mr. Ademola had confirmed that the guns, which had two different licenses, (one for himself and the other for Mr. Mohammed), belonged to the two judges, Mr. Mohammed denied ownership of the rifle.
  
  The SSS operative further said there were also allegations of bribery against the first defendant, which according to his principal, influenced the order by the defendant for the release of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, and former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki.
  
  Mr. Adepoju also told the court that of particular reference in his investigation was a set of payments made in three tranches to the account of Mrs. Ademola shortly before certain court orders were made by Mr. Ademola, in a case involving a client of Mr. Agi.
  
  “In my further investigation on the connection between Mrs. Ademola and Agi, I tried to establish if Barr. Agi had cases pending or concluded before Justice Ademola, and I discovered that they actually had cases in court,” he said.
  
  “Two among the cases that raised eyebrows were of AMCON vs. FRN and Friday Upkong vs. Chief of Naval Staff. These two cases involved huge sums of money.
  
  “Both cases emanated from Calabar, Cross-River State, Justice Ademola’s previous posting. In the AMCON case, three garnishee orders were granted by Justice Ademola in favor of Joe Agi’s client, which is Linas International Limited”.
  
  Speaking further, Mr. Adepoju explained how his department arrived at the allegation that Mr. Agi had paid N30 million into the account of Mr. Ademola to influence a judgment.
  
  The witness said the money was paid by two maritime businessmen, Ken Hubert and Bassey Bassey. According to the witness, the men paid the sum of $150, 000 which was later converted to naira by Mr. Agi to the tune of N37 million.
  
  “According to Joe Agi, the conversion rate was N37 million, but he remitted N30 million to Ms. Olubowale’s account”, the witness stated.
  
  During cross-examination, however, Mr. Adepoju said the allegations of influencing the appointment of Mrs. Ademola, made against her husband was a verbal brief given to him by his superior; adding that as an investigative officer, he has the discretion to either accept the brief or refuse it, based on evidence at his disposal.
  
  In response to Mr. Adepoju’s statement on influencing Mrs. Ademola’s appointment, the defense lawyer asked whether he had any such evidence and he responded in the negative.
  
  Mr. Adepoju also said he did not charge Mr. Ademola based on the allegations contained in the cited petition against him due to the insufficiency of evidence.
  
  “I am trained to go through any fact-finding quest with an objective mind. These are mere allegations subject to be confirmed or refuted, based on supporting documents,” he answered.
  
  Asked whether he found any available evidence incriminating Mr. Ademola with allegations of bribery in Messrs. Dasuki and Kanu’s cases, the witness answered in the negative.
  
  He also said he could not provide a link between the first defendant and any case in court involving the maritime businessmen, Messrs. Hubert and Bassey, who he had said paid $150, 000 to Mrs. Ademola’s account.
  
  Mr. Adepoju also answered in the negative when asked if there was a link between the case involving Friday Ukpong and the maritime businessmen.
  
  Reading through a document provided by the defense counsel, Mr. Adepoju confirmed that the money was paid by the businessmen, shortly before a wedding of Mr. Ademola’s daughter.
  
  Mr. Adepoju also confirmed that the ballistician whose report on the rifles were recorded was invited in January, months after the case was filed.
  
  He, however, added that the second ballistician was invited because the Service was not satisfied with the investigation first conducted by the police.
  

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