Ruth Ogunleye’s explosive allegations

FOR obvious reasons, Nigerians well apprised of the soldier, Ruth Ogunleye’s allegations against some of her superiors in the Nigerian Army must be intensely disturbed. In a video published on the social media platform, TikTok, the apparently distraught  soldier accused three senior officers in the army of harassment, intimidation and threat to life. The principal accused is a certain Colonel I.B Abdulkareem, who Ogunleye claimed acted in cahoots with one Colonel G.S Ogor and one Brigadier-General I.B Solebo to make her life a living hell for refusing to accept his (Abdulkareem’s) request for illicit sex. According to Ogunleye, her ordeal began when she was posted to the Cantonment Medical Centre, Ojo, Lagos State, where she met Colonel Abdulkareem. Ogunleye alleged that following her refusal to yield to the officer’s advances, he subjected her to physical and mental torture, ordered some soldiers to beat her up,  locked her up in a mental facility, and froze her salary account.

Ogunleye further claimed that the senior officer consistently threatened to engineer her dismissal from the army, prevented her from participating in promotion courses, and rejected her army pass requests. This, she said, was in addition to forcefully evicting her from her apartment. Ogunleye added that anytime she tried to report Abdulkareem to senior officers, he always told them she was suffering from mental illness, adding that even when her father intervened in the matter and pleaded for her to be left off the hook, her superior urged him to tell her “to obey the last order,” meaning that she should accede to the immoral request. She added: “Anytime he feels like he wants to embarrass me, he asks some soldiers to beat me. After beating me up, they will inject me. He will ask one Funke Ayeni, a female soldier, to set me up. She will set me up, inject me, and they will go and throw me somewhere. At the end of the day, this Brigadier-General I.B Solebo and some of those senior colonels will come to that place and be videoing me.”

Following the publication of the explosive allegations, the Army authorities issued a statement indicating that the allegations were being looked into, adding that the soldier had not exhausted all the available mechanisms for redress, including the Human Rights and Gender Desks established in the Army Headquarters and across the force’s formations where complaints about human rights and gender issues are entertained, before going public with her allegations. A statement issued by the Director of Army Public Relations, Major-General Onyema Nwachukwu, said: “The NA remains a professional force that self-regulates and conducts its activities in adherence to established rules and ethics while upholding the highest standards of discipline amongst personnel. We, therefore, encourage all personnel to always utilise the established channels for addressing grievances and concerns as a member of a noble and disciplined force. We assure the general public that the NA as an institution is committed to upholding the integrity and morals of its personnel and as such, appropriate actions will be taken based on the findings of the investigation.”

Subsequently, the soldier was reportedly flown to Abuja as investigations continued. Amidst the controversy, the Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, held a meeting with the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Taoreed Lagbaja, over the issue, saying that she was adequately updated on the efforts being made by the army towards resolving the issue.

To say the least, the Ogunleye’s case is disturbing. The army being a body traditionally characterised by a strict regime of discipline and well established rules for punishing offences, allegations of sexual violence within its ranks cannot be taken lightly. In the first place, it is tasked with protecting Nigeria’s sovereignty and it is indubitable that sexual terrorists within its ranks can only undermine national security. Besides, the fact cannot be contested that a soldier battling sexual assault by superiors cannot give his/her best to the nation, being burdened with psychological trauma. In August 2021, the then Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant-General Farouk Yahaya, decried the rising cases of sexual abuse in the military formations across the country. Speaking in Makurdi, Benue State, at the 2021 Conference of Nigerian Armed Forces Catholic Chaplains, the COAS had observed that “most of our barracks and formations are gradually being flooded with cases of sexual abuse of minors and vulnerable adults.” It would be interesting to know the state of affairs in the force since the former COAS spoke.

We call for a thorough investigation of the present case. The case should be treated dispassionately so that the truth can be established. If Ogunleye is merely being facetious, she should be treated in accordance with the service rules. If, on the other hand, her claims are actually genuine, then her tormentors must be subjected to the punishment prescribed by military law and the Nigerian constitution. The law  frowns on people being subjected to indignity. There is no way able-bodied and patriotic young Nigerians intending to join the military will not be discouraged hearing the kind of story that Ogunleye has told, including the allegation that she was not allowed to breathe the air outside her posting or even her flat, which would definitely have impeded her ability to take advantage of the reporting mechanisms outlined by the army authorities to seek redress.

It is gratifying that the army authorities have indicated that they are treating the Ogunleye case with the seriousness it deserves. Sexual harassment allegations are not supposed to be treated as frivolous. They impose and exact great costs from even those making the allegations, not to talk of the alleged perpetrators and even the entire society. We, therefore, expect the army authorities to be painstaking in their investigation of the complaints and expose whoever has committed a crime. We note that allegations do not constitute convictions and suspects are presumed innocent until lawful, adequate trial leads to conviction on the basis of evidence. Thus, a dispassionate investigation is what the case calls for. No one should hide under any pretence to perpetrate injustice. Nigerians will definitely be interested in the outcome of the investigation to determine that justice has been done in a clear and transparent manner.