Metro
Police Invite Activist Who Accused Officers of Raping Sex Workers, Say She Won’t be Detained
The Police in Abuja have invited a woman for questioning after she accused officers of raping suspected commercial sex workers with sachet water nylons.
Dorothy Njemanze, an Abuja-based women’s rights activist, raised the allegation on social media on Thursday. It came as police and social development authorities intensified their crackdown on alleged sex workers across the federal capital.
Abuja Police Commissioner Bala Ciroma told PREMIUM TIMES the activist was only asked to turn up at the FCT police headquarters to assist detectives with information about officers responsible for the gruesome abuses.
“The allegations are too grievous for our institution to ignore,” the police chief said. “We hope the woman will have useful information that will aid our investigation.”
Mrs Njemanze said she learnt from some of the women arrested and profiled as prostitutes that officers traded the women’s release for sex.
“We learnt that some of the women were raped with sachet water nylons because there were no condoms left,” Mrs Njemanze told PREMIUM TIMES Wednesday evening.
The police invited her because she had put out a video and wrote posts on her social media handles alleging the incident earlier this week.
“I will be honouring the commissioner’s invitation on Thursday (today) morning,” she told PREMIUM TIMES. “We are partners in progress.”
Mr Ciroma said he looked forward to receiving Mrs Njemanze on Thursday, and she will not be detained no matter how the invitation turned out.
Out on a limb
Dozens of women have been arrested at night clubs in major parts of the city within the last two weeks. They were accused of “offences” ranging from prostitution to indecent dressing, despite social media outrage that some of the women might have been hanging out with male acquaintances or even alone.
At least 70 women were arrested in a joint raid by the police and Abuja social workers between April 29 and 29. The arrests were in addition to dozens of women who were taken into custody at Caramelo, a famous gentleman’s club in the posh Utako neighbourhood.
The Nigerian Constitution is silent on commercial sex activities, but there are subsidiary legislation in some local jurisdictions that prohibit such acts. After the purported invasion of Abuja by young women repeatedly made headlines in 2011, there were rumours that Ike Ekweremadu was sponsoring a bill to legalise the commercial sex work in the country. The Enugu senator, who became the deputy senate president in 2015, however, denied the reports at the time.
The police summarily arraigned some of the women at an improvised courtroom, but many were reportedly freed amidst unclear circumstances. Some of those convicted received up to six months’ imprisonment, while a few others were slammed with fines.
Even though the clubs were filled with both sexes, only women were arrested. This has elicited allegations of gender-based violence against women, which could render them even more vulnerable than they had been.
‘No vagina is safe in Abuja’
Mrs Njemanze said she had been gathering evidence about the alleged rape of women with sachet water nylons, but her personal experience sufficed to conclude that officers were capable of committing such acts.
“When I was arrested in 2012, my breast and buttocks were terribly fondled by some of the officers,” Mrs Njemanze said.
She made headlines that year after being arrested for alleged prostitution. She sued the Nigerian government at ECOWAS Court and won. The court determined that her rights were violated because she was arrested only because she was out at night.
“In most cases of prostitution, you will have a man and a woman,” Mrs Njemanze said. “If you arrest only the woman and profile her as a prostitute, then it becomes gender-based violence.”
She said only 10 of about 70 women who were arrested last week were arraigned before a mobile court near the Federal Secretariat in Abuja on Tuesday.
“Police officers freed most of the women after they were given sex and money,” Mrs Njemanze said.
She said she will demand a review of the circumstances under which the most of the women were released without charges — including an interview of all the officers that took part in the arrests and some of the freed detainees.
‘Just plead guilty’
Mrs Njemanze said one of the major concerns she would raise with Mr Ciroma will be about officers’ “unethical practice” of ensnaring suspected prostitutes into admitting their guilt.
“Whenever they arrest women at night clubs, be they strippers or commercial sex workers or whatever, they usually ask them to just plead guilty in their kangaroo court so they could be fined for a small amount rather than sent to jail,” she said.
The officers use the tactics to avoid the responsibility of proving that the women were actually prostitutes as required in criminal proceedings. Only a few of victims of discriminatory police arrests know their fundamental rights as Nigerian citizens, she added.
“I respect the commissioner because he has been proactive against sexual and gender-based violence,” Mrs Njemanze said. “But the officers have failed to emulate his professionalism.”
Premium Times
Leading payment services bank, MoneyMaster Payment Service Bank (MMPSB) continues to delight its existing customers with various freebies for every transaction.
The bank recently announced the launch of a new 100MB data offer for new customers. The initiative aims to encourage people with little or no access to banking services to set up their own mobile wallets using the bank’s USSD banking platform. The promotion is available to Glo customers using the bank’s USSD bank code, *995#.
A few weeks ago, MoneyMaster introduced a 10 percent data bonus on top-ups of 1,000 naira and above for existing and new customers on the Glo network. The offer was rated as one of the best offers in the country in terms of the amount of data offered. Data purchases are valid for 30 days, and any unused data can be rolled over to your next plan.
Commenting on the data offer, Julius Arhebun, head of agency banking at MoneyMaster, said: “as a payment service bank, one of our core mandates is to promote financial inclusion. This offer builds on the various financial education we have been providing online and across our various customer touchpoints.
“With this new 100MB offer, we want to encourage Nigerians in the unbanked and underbanked pools to be financially included by having at least a mobile wallet. The account number of this mobile wallet is derived from their mobile number, and can be easily recalled,” he noted.
MoneyMaster PSB is a leading provider of innovative digital financial products and services that transform lives and contribute to sustainable living. With a mission to deepen financial inclusion, MoneyMaster has been instrumental in providing financial technology services to bridge the gap between the banked, unbanked and underbanked.
Leading real estate and property firm, Adron Homes and Properties, has announced the postponement of the earlier advertised seventh edition of the Adron Homes Games, with the theme Fit to be the Biggest.
The postponement, according to a statement signed by the Group’s Managing Director, Adenike Ajobo, and made available to Pointblank.ng, is as a result security concerns as the company prioritizes the security of its staff, attendees and participants.
Recall that the sports fiesta, originally billed to take place on November 29 and 30, 2024, was scheduled to hold at the Lekan Salami Stadium in Ibadan.
Read the statement in full:
POSTPONEMENT OF ADRON GAMES 2024
Adron Homes wishes to announce the cancellation of the much-anticipated Adron Games 2024.
This decision, was made in the best interest of all participants, stakeholders, and the broader community. The postponement is necessitated by heightened security concerns in certain regions that could potentially jeopardize the safety of staff, attendees and participants.
As an organization that is committed to the well-being of its staffs, partners and everyone involved, priority is designated to safety and security above all else. Also, the organization is taking this opportunity to rethink and restructure its sporting initiatives to ensure public inclusivity
and as part of efforts to enhance and expand the impact of its wellness programs, the Adron Games will evolve into a broader, more inclusive sporting initiative.
This transformation will foster collaboration, unity, and healthy competition among a wider array of participants, and will embody the same spirit of excellence, teamwork, and wellness that the Adron Games has championed over the years.
We deeply regret any inconvenience this decision may cause and hereby extend our heartfelt gratitude to our valued staff, participants, partners, ambassadors and supporters for their understanding and continued trust in Adron Homes.
Adron Homes remains committed to inspiring excellence and fostering community engagement through corporate wellness initiatives such as Adron Games at all times.
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Police Affairs, Mr. James Sule, has retired from service after 35 years of meritorious service to the nation, according to a statement signed by the Deputy Director, Information and Public Relations Unit, Mr. Bolaji Kazeem, and made available to the National Association of Online Security News Publishers (NAOSNP).
The Permanent Secretary however, charged the directorate cadre to mentor officers in the service for effective service delivery to the citizens, as a parting advice.
He made the charge during the send-forth ceremony organized on his behalf by the Ministry staff at the Headquarters of the Ministry in Abuja.
The retired Permanent Secretary said that everything starts and ends with leadership and the need to uphold the organization’s rules and regulations without considering people’s feelings.
“We are all leaders just like I said, don’t just think the president, vice president, and governors are only leaders. What can you do in your community to impact positively on others? What are you doing to mentor the younger ones so that whatever corner you find yourself in, whether you are a union leader, whether you are an assistant director or you are a principal officer, you do your best to be fair, accountable, and transparent in your activities?
He used the opportunity to thank the management and staff of the Ministry for their support and for working with him as a team to ensure the success of the ministry.
According to James, “Indeed, it was a privilege to work alongside a talented and committed team. Together we have achieved a lot, and I am proud of knowing you and we have accomplished it while we were here although it was short, I also want to thank you for your kind words. I thank my personal staff that’s brought so much to the nation-building,” he said.
In his response, the Director charged with the Permanent Secretary Office, Mr. Yusuf Abubakar Argungu, stated that the staff has learned so much from the retired Permanent Secretary noting that the friendship and mentorship have just begun and not the end of it, just the beginning of it.
“It is the perfect time to reflect on the invaluable lessons, experiences, and memories you have shared with us and to experience our heartfelt appreciation. Retirement isn’t the end of an era but the beginning of a new chapter in life. We are wishing you a retirement filled with exciting journeys. Congratulations,” he said.
