Enugu  govt official orders thug to slap 70 – year-old woman

...He is oppressing us, Ekene
…My half brothers want governor to sack me, Emeka

Stanley Ihedigbo

Chairman of the Enugu State Local Government Services Commission, Mr.  Emeka Nwatu, allegedly ordered one of his thugs to slap a 70-year-old woman, Mrs. Victoria Nwatu.

Speaking with Nation Update, Victoria’s son and half-brother to the chairman,  Ekene said since his father’s first son got apportionment with the state government, he had become a terror in the family.

Ekene who hails from Akpugo, in Nkanu West Local Government Area of the state said his father, Nweke Nnamani died in June 2010, leaving behind three wives.

According to him, the government official has been threatening his mother, Victoria to pack out of her husband’s home for no reason , revealing that the house which the chairman renovated was built by their father.

He said: “Before Emeka started renovating the building, I  advised him,  that whatever he wants to do concerning the house, he should carry every member of the family along. He can’t do something in the family house because he feels like doing it, and he will not carry other members of the family along.  We are large family and everyone of us has a say.  After renovating the house, he stationed police men in the entrance gate.”

He noted that on 15th November 2019, as part of measures to intimidate them, Emeka told one Afam Nwatu, to teach his mother a lesson by slapping her.

“Afam is one of Emeka’s private thugs and also my half-brother too. Our father married three wives and before now, we have been leaving peacefully as one family.  Afam slapped my aged mother three times.

Ekene

“My mother was taken to our Igwe’s palace and before now, Igwe was aware of Emeka’s attitude towards us. The Igwe has to report the incident to the Enugu State Criminal Investigation Department (CID), that he doesn’t like the way the council chairman has been treating his step mother and his half-brothers.

“Emeka was invited to the palace and when he came, he boasted that he is government and nobody would question him. Unfortunately, our Igwe died last year December and his wife, took over the case.  She has intervened on several occasions, but to no avail,” he narrated.

He recalled on that day his mother was maltreated, he called the police from Agbani station to arrest the man who carried out the act. “The police arrested him, but later released him on the instruction of my elder brother, Emeka. But to avoid having issue with our eldest brother, I didn’t go further with the case,” Ekene stated.

“On 30th December last year, when almost everyone in the family had come back for end of year, my younger brothers, Chijioke and Chikezie were angry.  One of them went to Afam, who is their age mate, to ask why he slapped our mother. As they were talking, Afam ran into the kitchen and picked up a knife, and before we knew what was happening between two of them, Afam stabbed Chijioke on his hand.

“The young men that were around in the compound and witnessed the incident were so angry, they accosted Afam, that as a brother they never expect his attitude towards one of them. In the process, Afam, sustained injury, and Emeka who was upstairs watching his younger ones, arguing, didn’t utter a word, only to call one Inspector Rita to come over.

“Immediately the police woman arrived with some of her colleagues and they arrested two of my younger brothers.  Two of them were detained for two days without food and water, on instructions of Emeka.  When the community leaders went to him to release his step brothers from detention, the police came up with allegation against them, that they were arrested for attempted murder”, he lamented .

Ekene added that reliable source disclosed to him, Emeka’s plan was to take his brothers to court and dump them in the prison.

“With the interventions of one Dr. Bello and the Area Commander, my brothers were released and they traveled back to their bases. Only to hear that one of their Surtees had been arrested and tortured, claiming that my younger brothers ran away. Later, it was discovered that, Emeka was behind the development”, he added.

According to him the police men have been harassing anybody who wants to enter the compound and would only allow any member of the family to enter the compound based on instruction from Emeka, a situation he said portends evil motive.

He therefore appealed to the governor of Enugu state and the police authority to bring him to order to avoid any violence in the family.

He also advised Emeka to release all property of their late father in his position so that everybody would have his own share.

“He wants to take over all our father’s property, it wouldn’t work for him.  Unfortunate, my father didn’t write any will before he died but for the sake of peace, he should release all our father’s property, so that every one of us benefits from it”, we all have right in the family, he Ekene added.

Victoria Nwatu

Mrs. Nwatu, who could not control her tears stated that she was legally married to her husband like every other wives in the family.

“I don’t see the reason why Emeka would want me to pack out from my husband’s house, talk less of sending his thugs to slap me. I am not dragging anything with him, I took him as my son and husband because he is my husband’s first son.

“He doesn’t want any of his siblings to enter their father’s compound, he has vowed to send me out from my husband’s place because he works with government. He also promised to deal with any of my children who enters the compound.

“He has been telling those who cared to listen that my husband gave him all his landed property as the first son in the family but that’s a complete lie,”  the aged woman lamented.

Meanwhile, the Executive Director, Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC), Comrade Okechukwu Nwanguma has appealed to the Chairman, Police Service Commission Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, through a petition, requesting the office to investigate the abuse of power,  bias in handling family dispute and oppression as well as discreditable conduct.

Nwanguma

He also said that the current Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Agbani Police Divisional Headquarters, one Nwazi Philip, Inspector Rita Thomas and others to thoroughly investigate any unprofessional conduct towards the matter.

RULAAC boss nonetheless noted that Emeka had been doing everything hurtful – including using and manipulating the Police at their local community, and even at the state command level to make life unbearable for the aged Mrs.  Nwatu and her children as well as to force her to vacate the compound for him alone.

Nevertheless, Emeka denied the allegations against him adding that his half-brothers wanted to tarnish his good image which he had worked many years for.

“My younger ones want to paint me as a bad person before the Enugu State governor. I have been working with the governor for over seven years and he knows my character.  So he can’t because of false allegations against me by my half-brothers say that I am not a good person.

“Not just that I was given appointment in government, i work where I manage workers of Enugu State local  government councils  with over 14,000 workers, there has never been any crisis in the council’s under my watch, he stated.

He averred  that solution to the problem on ground may not be media massaging, that he would not hesitate to seek legal action against any malicious article against him.

he further said, “I am waiting for any journalist that will publish any thing against me,  I have written  a petition to the Inspector- General of Police to investigate the allegations my brothers are making against me and the police,”  he restated.