When a man is down, you do not kick him in the groin. To do so is to inflict excruciating physical and
psychological pain on the man. Enugu State Governor, Sullivan Chime, is in pain in many ways. Rumours
circulating in online and mainstream media that suggested that he had detained his wife, Clara, unlawfully in
an apartment at the Government House, Enugu, had hurt him seriously.
If Chime failed to respond to allegations of spousal abuse directed against him in the public sphere, his
family’s name would have been severely damaged. Silence on his part could have been interpreted, as the
mark of an arrogant and abusive husband, who takes pleasure in mistreating his wife. In that case, rumour
merchants could have embellished news reports about the relationship between Chime and his wife. All these
would seem to justify Chime’s decision to hold a press conference last week.
In 2012 when he slipped out of the country secretly to undergo medical treatment in London for cancer of the
nose, he was followed by rumours of his demise and other unpleasant stories that mocked the state of his
health. Last week, Chime decided he must do something to end rumours that suggested he was maltreating
his wife. To prove his innocence, Chime brought to the press conference his brother and sister, his wife, his
wife’s brother, including his wife’s neuro-psychiatrist.
The case between Chime and his wife has gone beyond a matter between a husband and wife. Other outside
players are now involved. These are human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, and the National Human Rights
Commission (NHRC). This case has raised a number of troubling questions.
Does Falana have a briefing from Mrs. Chime to represent and free her from the alleged illegal detention at the
Government House, Enugu? If yes, does Falana also have Mrs. Chime’s authority to discuss her case in the
media? If no, it seems to me that Mrs. Chime’s right to privacy may have been violated. Did Mrs. Chime
contact anyone (e.g. journalists, human rights lawyers, the human rights commission, etc) outside her family
to complain about her treatment at the Government House, Enugu? If she did, was she coerced to change her
story last week when she said emphatically she did not contact Falana or any organisation to complain that
she was being detained against her will at the Government House, Enugu?
Chime, as the husband of Clara, is in an even more precarious situation. He said at the press conference last
week that his wife had health challenges, which he said prompted him to take actions to protect her. Whether
his wife perceived those actions as designed to constrain her freedom or in her best interest is a different
matter.
On the weight of evidence presented so far, I am persuaded to believe that Chime acted to protect his wife. At
the press conference last week, Chime made some insightful comments, such as: “Would I have been a better
husband if I asked her to leave the lodge because of her medical challenges? … I wanted the best for her and
that’s why I pleaded with the doctors to have her treated at home. That is also why I allowed her access to her
telephone and laptop, which unfortunately led to the stage where I’m now being falsely accused of imprisoning
or detaining my own wife.”
Chime is in a Catch-22 situation. He would be damned if he acted to help his ailing wife. He would also be
damned if he didn’t do anything to assist his wife. In fact, if he did nothing, he would have been perceived as
a callous husband. And yet I have heard arguments expressed in the public sphere in which some people
queried whether Mrs Chime’s treatment or detention in Government House was the appropriate way to respond
to a woman who apparently had mental health issues.
As we do not know the nature of Mrs Chime’s health challenge, it would be pointless to argue that the husband
did the wrong thing by arranging for her to be treated at home rather than have her undergo medical treatment
at an established health facility or hospital.
There is no doubt that all is not well between the governor and his wife. However, we must keep in mind that
Mrs Chime’s mental health problem may have contributed to that frail relationship between husband and wife.
Yet there are questions that require answers. Did Mrs Chime understand that her detention was in her best
interests? Even if Mrs Chime did not like the way she was being detained at the Government House, did she act
rationally when she approached an outsider such as Falana to defend her or when she petitioned the National
Human Rights Commission to investigate her condition at the Government House?
These questions are uncomfortable because they revolve around the relationship between a husband and
wife. In this particular case, a partner has alleged maltreatment. She did not end there. She went a step
further to secure the services of a lawyer. Falana told the nation he had instructions from Mrs Chime to defend
her rights. Could this case have been resolved much earlier if Mrs Chime observed traditional norms and
practices by approaching the elders in her husband’s community or even her husband’s kith and kin to seek
their intervention?
There are more puzzles. At the press conference on Tuesday, 5 November 2013, Mrs Chime denied engaging
Falana to represent and free her from detention in the Government House, Enugu. She also denied forwarding
a petition to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in which she claimed to have been detained by
her husband.
Barely 72 hours after the press conference, Falana responded with an emphatic statement in which he said he
had Mrs Chime’s briefing to represent and free her from bondage. According to the Punch of Friday, 8
November 2013, Falana said: “With respect to Mrs. Clara Chime, I wish to say, without any fear of
contradiction, that I have her instructions in writing to challenge her illegal detention at the Government House,
Enugu.” This declaration makes the entire case confusing. Who is telling the truth?
I am saddened by the fact that a private matter between a man and his wife which ordinarily should have been
dealt with in a private way because of the medical issues involved has now been blown open in the public.
Even as Chime, his wife and Falana engage in a tangled web of exchanges about who did what, when and
what prompted their actions, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has weighed into the dispute.
The NHRC said last Friday (8 November 2013) it had investigated complaints lodged by Mrs Chime in which
she alleged that her rights were being abused. The commission said the cause of the misunderstanding
between Governor Chime and his wife was the process adopted in the treatment of her “hallucinations and
depression”.
Mrs Chime reacted angrily last Saturday to the way the NHRC described her medical condition.
In a report published in the Punch on Sunday (10 November 2013), Mrs Chime complained to Falana, her
lawyer, that the National Human Rights Commission has cast aspersions on her person in its preliminary
report. In her complaint, Mrs Chime was reported to have written: “I am very disappointed to read what has
been narrated by the National Human Rights Commission. Apart from the fact that the information was largely
false, it showed lack of sensitivity in publishing sensitive medical detail… It is as though the commission set
out to ridicule me. I made it clear to them that I had a nervous breakdown and found it inexplicable as to how
hallucinations featured as part of my symptoms.”
Embarrassed by the blunder contained in its preliminary report, the National Human Rights Commission moved
quickly last Sunday to deny that it said that Mrs Chime had any health challenges. The NHRC blamed the
media for the inaccuracies in reporting the preliminary report. The commission said in its denial published in
the Punch two days ago (Monday, 11 November 2013): “The commission… has never claimed to have
established that Mrs. Chime has health challenges. The attention of the National Human Rights Commission
has been drawn to media reports which suggested that the commission had established that Chime, suffers
from health challenges. This implies that the commission is biased and has already taken a decision on her
complaint, which is far from the truth. The National Human Rights Commission has yet to reach a
determination on the petition received from Mrs. Chime.”
Although Mrs Chime claimed during her husband’s press conference on Tuesday last week that she did not
contact any lawyer or lodged a petition with the human rights commission, it is now apparent from the NHRC’s
press release that Mrs Chime did indeed lodge a petition with the NHRC.
Both Falana and the NHRC must not exploit the medical condition of Mrs Chime to escalate this problem
through their comments and statements to the media. Governor Chime has admitted his wife has a health
problem. Mrs Clara Chime has also confirmed that she has some health problems. As long as no one’s basic
rights are abused or infringed, both husband and wife should be left to determine how best to deal with the
medical challenge.

Mr Funny - Your funny,

(So no gate man to open gate? No house-girl/boy to open door? - Na Wa ohh)

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