THE case of Ruth Ogunleye, a soldier who accused senior officers of harassment and threat to life, sent shock waves across the country, but the allegations made by another female soldier attached to Ilese Sappers Barracks, Division 2, Ogun State, Lance Corporal Philomena Nnamoko, who claimed that her senior colleagues had been bullying and harassing her following her refusal to give in to their sexual advances, and who was allegedly brutalised and sent to the Yaba Psychiatric Hospital following her interview with a national daily, are even more disturbing. For some time now, Nnamoko has been telling eerily disturbing stories of sexual harassment, brutality and threat to life, but the Army authorities are yet to make a pronouncement on her case. And even more disturbing is the fact that her son, Emmanuel Brown, who alleged that she was assaulted by her superiors, was himself allegedly locked up by the same individuals who were said to have been rattled by his story in the media.
Brown had said: “I rushed to the Medical Reception Station inside the barracks. When I got there, she was unconscious. When she regained consciousness, she explained how they beat her up. I felt horrible because of the stress, and I was saddened to see bruises on her body. While there, she vomited and I had to clean her up and cover her with clothes, because she was feeling cold. On getting to the MRS, I discovered that they had taken her to the Yaba Psychiatric Hospital.” The account was corroborated by Nnamoko’s lawyer, Kayode Oshiyemi, who, in a throwback to the case of Ogunleye, also alleged that his client was assaulted by a senior officer who lied that she had a mental disorder in a bid to cover up the assault.
Nnamoko, a widow who joined the Army on August 15, 2009 and was attached to the 22 Support, Engineering Regiment, Intelligence Department, Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, had on several occasions begged to be disengaged from the force due to her health condition and the maltreatment by her superior officers. Narrating her ordeal, Nnamoko said: “I faced termination and abuse while stationed in Ibadan, where I experienced an attempted rape in the guardroom. The frustration became too much and I was sent out of Ibadan barracks and for rehab the following day in 2010. On May 29, 2018, I approached a fellow soldier to greet him when I went to use the toilet at night, but I received no response and mentioned his name to inform him that I had greeted him.” This soldier, she alleged, beat her to stupor. Nnamoko said she was directed to write a statement but was thereafter ordered to remain in the guardroom and had her hands and legs cuffed. She also alleged that on the eve of her fibroids surgery, she was, “despite being in a wrapper, tortured and dumped in a guardroom without providing any cover,” and bled profusely the next day.
She added: “I have faced mistreatment from the captain who denied my request for a pass to seek medical treatment during our peacekeeping mission in Sudan. Another officer, the Regimental Sergeant Major, also subjected me to a similar treatment by assigning me to perform tasks meant for two individuals. As a result of my refusal to date either of them, I have become a target of their maltreatment. I deeply regret joining the Nigerian Army, especially as many female soldiers have already left due to the mistreatment they faced over their refusal to have sexual relationships with the superior officers. There are numerous instances when a female soldier would experience humiliation without limitations, as speaking up would result in demotion.”
As we noted in previous editorials, the prevalence of sexual harassment in Nigerian Army formations was confirmed by no less a personality than the immediate past Chief of Army Staff, Lt-General Farouk Yahaya. It is distressing that since that acknowledgment, not much appears to have been done to stamp out sexual harassment and brutality of female soldiers in the force. If Ogunleye is, as indicated by the Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Ohanenye, “undergoing rehabilitation”, is Nnamoko also suffering from mental illness? How is it that soldiers who give specific details of alleged brutality and the names of their alleged tormentors somehow manage to end up in psychiatric facilities? Is it that the alleged crimes against them did not occur? Is there a cover-up? Will young, patriotic Nigerian girls intending to join any branch of the Nigerian military not be deterred by heartbreaking stories such as Ogunleye’s and Nnamoko’s?
In perhaps the most harrowing aspect of her story, Nnamoko said: “One day, while I was serving punishment in the guardroom, a Major General came to visit our barracks. As soon as I heard his voice, I started crying loudly in the guardroom. Thankfully, he heard my cries and asked the soldiers accompanying him where the distressed cries were coming from. They told him not to worry, explaining that it was a mad civilian woman they put in the guardroom. Upon hearing this response, the Major General decided not to bother checking the guardroom that day.” If things like this actually happen in the Nigerian Army, then the country is in serious mess. The authorities must speak up. They must do everything within their power to ensure that sexual harassment does not erode whatever respect the public still has for the force. It is disturbing when soldier after soldier has to utilise the social media to ventilate grievances because the official channels for complaints have been allegedly compromised.
We do not hold the alleged offenders as guilty as charged. What we demand is an impartial investigation.
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