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ayomorocco (f)
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From: xxxxxx@hotmail.comTo: tell-da-truth-as-it-is@sacred-truth.comSubject: BEFORE WE COMMIT ADMIRAL AROGUNDADE TO MOTHER EARTH, Date: Thu, 13 Nov 2008 10:36:39 +0000 [ b]BEFORE WE COMMIT ADMIRAL AROGUNDADE TO MOTHER EARTH………,
by Niji xxxxx
I am compelled to join the raging debate on the proprietariness or otherwise, of the maltreatment of a certain Miss Uzoma Okere by Naval ratings attached o the convoy of Rear Admiral Harry Arogundade, due to the different dimensions and distortions the story has assumed in the past few days. Journalists, Social Critics, Nigerians in Diaspora, etc have all had a field day abusing, maligning, and denigrating the Admiral, as well the Nigerian Navy.
In the first instance, let me say categorically here that I am “priviledged” to know Admiral Arogundade on a personal level and I am privy to the other version of events. I have carefully heard/read both sides of the story and painstakingly analysed the sequence of events. However, before my action is misconstrued by the usually “all-knowing Nigerian public” and the ever-(newspaper)-present “loudspeaker Lawyers”, let me point out here that my analysis of the unfortunate events of that day would not even be based on the Admirals’ version of events.
For effect, my analysis will be SOLELY based on the young woman’s version of events as contained in the “CityStrings” section of ThisDay of Friday, November 7, 2008, in an interview conducted with her by a certain Eugene Agha. I urge all commentators to refer to this article in order to understand what transpired on that fateful day.
1. In paragraph 6 of the said article, the young woman said “…… The Oga had passed me at some point, there was this Naval rating who asked me to stop. He used his hand to display what he meant and I pointed towards Ajose Adeogun indicating that I was not going their way.” “(Paragraph 7)…. One of the ratings started whipping me; he whipped about two to three times. That was when I came out of my car angrily and he continued to whip me, so I held onto his whip and used it to whip him back.”
Comment – It is obvious from the above that the young woman simply failed to stop when she had been directed to do so. She had obviously used her own “intuition/discretion” to continue moving since …, as she said …, “she was not going their way”. Apparently this open stubbornness infuriated a Naval rating who probably assaulted her or her car (depending on whose version one decides to believe). Why did she not stop like the others? What would it have cost her to stop for 30 seconds and allow them go their way? Now, my point is if you are assaulted unjustly by a Uniformed Military man should you not have the simple decorum to go and lodge an official complaint with the Police, the Naval Police, or even the Media? More especially when you are a supposed “lady”? Then she decided to confront a Uniformed Military man in a scuffle, holding on to his whip and using the whip to whip the man. A 27 year old girl publicly whipping a Uniformed Soldier in broad daylight in front of other Soldier-colleagues and she expected to be applauded for doing that???!
2. It is also obvious from the paragraphs above that the Admiral was not even at the scene as at the point the problem started as he had passed her “… at some point”.
3. Now having infuriated the ratings by her obstinacy and whipping of a Uniformed Military man, they all descended on her to obviously teach her a lesson. Even in the circulated video clip of the incident the woman was beaten up by the ratings and left alone at some point only for her to pursue them again. What exactly did she expect to gain from such activity? Profound apologies, a pat on the head, and perhaps a cash donation from the ratings? And to my greatest surprise some journalists had hailed this particular action of hers as “being brave” and “holding her own ground”…. Etc The video clip was obviously edited to show only the part where she was being beaten, and not the part where she whipped a uniformed Naval rating.
4. In paragraph 9 she said “…… The one with the Navy logo as neck tie told them to arrest and handcuff me……, ” It is apparent that it was this “arrest” that now made the ratings to drag her towards the Guest House where the Admiral had gone into. And it is at this point that the Admiral came face to face with her, after he had been briefed by his men on what transpired. In paragraph 12 she tells of the phone discussion between her father and the Admiral. The Admiral said to her that she should count herself lucky that she was not killed and that got her even more upset. Then she started to shout on the Admiral himself “…, since we are in a democratic country….” I wonder since when democracy has allowed 27 year olds to shout publicly on Military Generals. Despite all these the Admiral actually took pity on her. It was this pity that now made the Admiral to offer advice to her that she was lucky not to have been killed before being brought to him as the ratings might have killed her with the way she kept having a go at them (moreover the Admiral knew that the moment she had been brought before him none of the ratings would dare touch her again).
5. In paragraph 13, after shouting on the Admiral, the Admiral advised her that she needed to know that even in a democracy she must not challenge people in uniform. She said she replied that she did nothing wrong. I, for one, know for a fact that she said much more than that to the Admiral. In paragraph 14, it was her permanently obstinate & shouting reaction (to even the Admiral himself) that frustrated the Admiral into saying to her that he thought he could advise her as she was old enough to be his child. Despite all these the Admiral was the one that gave her a shirt to cover herself up with which in essence means that the Admiral did not even harbour any major grouse against her otherwise he could have easily gotten her detained and further maltreated, as the lurking ratings were hoping that was what he would instruct them to do.
6. Also in paragraph 14 she mentions that the Admiral even had to tell her that she was not remorseful. Members of the all learned media, there must be a good reason for an Admiral to utter such words. People need to know or get to hear what and what she said to the Admiral that made the man conclude accordingly. I am sure the Admiral, at that point, probably realised that she had thuggish tendencies and could be further manhandled by the hopeful ratings waiting in the wings.
MY OBSERVATIONS
1. Rear Admiral Arogundade has not done anything wrong in my own view. What did the public expect the Admiral to do in such instance? Applaud her behaviour and give her wads of naira notes? She had been beaten already before she was brought to the Admiral, and the Admiral did not further order her maltreatment in any way. The only thing the Admiral did was to engage her in a discussion all through which she was even rude to the Admiral. A 27 year old girl??? In my own opinion, the fact that the Admiral even decided to wade into the matter after having entered the Guest House, coming face to face with her, and advising her regards her behaviour was very, very, magnanimous of the Rear Admiral. Most Generals of the Armed forces as we all know wouldn’t even get involved in such lowly issues pertaining to the lower ranks at all.
2. There has been public outcry against Admiral Arogundade’s use of Naval ratings and siren. The question to ask is – Did he acquire those illegally? Public commentators and journalists have gone on and on to insinuate that he ought not to be using ratings and siren when the fact of the matter is that all of those tools were directly issued to him by the Military High Command, as is normally issued to very senior military officers of certain ranks and postings considered to be strategic. Now, all of a sudden the all-knowing journalists and “loudspeaker lawyers” know more about the operations of the military than the military high command that gave out those movement tools to the General in the first instance! Or are they telling us that the Nigerian Military High Command is made up of dumbheads who do not have reasons for giving such protection to their Generals? Some knuckleheads were even wondering why Nigerian Military Generals were not being made to enter public buses and so on. Are we in an organised society like first world countries? So Generals who hold strategic troop command positions should be sitting amongst Area Boys, Armed Robbers, and the like? Incidentally, this so-called democracy that we have in this country is guaranteed by the Generals at the expense of their lives. What lunacy? What a country?
3. I believe the young woman herself is nothing but a young beast in the making. A wild thug without any sense of decorum herself. And the media, loudspeaker lawyers, and the like have been encouraging her to take on uniformed authority, simply because we are in a so-called “democracy”. As far as I know, any woman with a decent enough upbringing could never, ever, have ventured to do what that girl did. A decent civilian will take the unjust assault on the chin first and then go to lodge an official complaint to higher or constituted authorities, more especially when she had a father that could even take up the matter right from the top in Abuja. Very surprising. If a 27 year old woman can jump on a uniformed military man in broad daylight and whip the man, then I would want to ask what type of children are we now raising in this country? As for me, the only individuals that have earned my pity in the entire saga are (a) the Rear Admiral whose name has been so maligned to high heavens worldwide for even taking pity on the girl, as if he was the one that ordered her beating (b) the very unfortunate husband to be of the young female thug in question.
4. With regards to our so-called democracy, I am amazed that the coterie of the media, loudspeaker lawyers, and sections of the public are already behaving as if our democracy is already entrenched. A 9-year old democracy?? And we are all behaving as if we are such an advanced democratic country in the league of the US, France and Britain? Does anybody understand that it has taken those countries over a century of largely uninterrupted democracy to get to where they are? Nigerians do not even want to learn to walk in our democratic experiment, they just want to start to fly. Do people realise that our history and culture have largely defined our mental attitudes? Nigerians just want to wake up one morning and be in a position to decommission a Military General for some rating(s) assault on one individual girl? Are we suddenly America, France or the UK? In that case we might as well ask our Military Generals to start parking by the roadside for us civilians to pass, since “we are in a democracy…, ”
5. For the avoidance of any doubt our democracy is just 9-years old. And it is already fractured with fatally rigged “landslide victories” everywhere. Our democracy is not even walking with two legs yet, talk less of sitting comfortably in an armchair like they have been able to achieve in the developed world. The Nigerian democracy, in my opinion, possesses only one leg, supported by crutches, and that single leg is even bandaged. To cap it all the ThisDay editorial comment (of 12 November 2008) was outrightly insulting to the military. Why on earth would ThisDay refer to members of the Nigerian Military as “mad dogs”? And the ThisDay editorial board thinks they have made a major point by directly insulting the military? We all should be very careful with the way we have begun to denigrate the military nowadays simply because “we are in a democracy”. The late MKO Abiola/Airforce saga of some years back readily comes to mind. If in just 9 years of democracy our biggest Newspaper houses have started referring to Military men as “mad dogs” then I wonder what names they would be calling the Military after 20 years of uninterrupted democracy. May I remind everyone that these are people who have voluntarily signed up their lives to protect you and I, so that we could go to parties, naming ceremonies, et al??? If these gallant people had refused to sign up for the military has it occurred to anyone that we would all have had to be conscripted? It happened even in the USA during the Vietnam war and the so-called “Human Rights Lawyers” couldn’t do anything about it. I, for one, would never, ever be a party to rubbishing the Nigerian Military in any form. Let anyone say what they may like.
6. Governor Fashola of Lagos State simply played to the gallery initially over the matter by threatening publicly (in front of the media) to report the incident to the President. How do you listen to one party in a case involving several parties and jump up to say you are going to report to the President? Moreover is Admiral Arogundade a primary 3 pupil that a State Governor would want to report to a Headmaster? As a Senior Advocate of Nigeria he ought to know better! I am reliably informed that Fashola has now heard the other side of the story and it would be nice for journalists to accost him and check out what he now has to say on the incident.
7. It just beats my imagination that we all tend to be celebrating a senseless action by a thuggish young woman. There is no doubt in my mind that the action of the first rating that hit her/her car with a horsewhip was wrong and quite condemnable but to now go as far as she did beggars belief. If the Naval ratings can be labelled as mad dogs, then what label do we ascribe to a young woman that puts up such behaviour in broad daylight? Ordinarily this is an action that no right thinking civilian would perform on a Policeman, talk less of the Military. I do not even think it is possible to try such dastardly act with the SSS, who are not even a uniformed organisation, without massive repercussions. And I am certain that even Colonel Okere (Rtd), who is the girl’s father and Head of Security at the National Assembly would not smile and shake hands with any civilian that engages any of his uniformed “maiguards” at the National Assembly in a scuffle and then proceeds to whip such guard.
8. President Yar Adua has sent a memo to the Chief of Defence Staff over this matter. I am particularly amazed at the President’s decision to begin sending memos on a single individual case to the CDS. For starters do we know how many people are daily horse-whipped whenever the President or Governors’ entourages pass by? Do we know how many people are horse-whipped daily in the 36 States of the federation plus FCT? So how many memos does the President hope to send before the expiration of his tenure? Well, I can only wish the President the best of luck in his pursuit.
9. I have found a good number of reactions to the incident, especially from Nigerians in the Diaspora to be very disturbing, and superbly ironical. Some contributors have actually called for Admiral Arogundade to be tied to a stake and shot! Some wished that the Admiral should be dragged on the floor for over 20 kilometres and sacked! Etc. Such comments are very, very, ironical indeed especially when you consider that the authors are the so-called “decent Nigerians” living abroad. Assuming the whole episode was even Admiral Arogundade’s fault, would it be appropriate for Nigerians abroad (who have been part and parcel of the First World democratic societies) to call for such actions? In my opinion, we Nigerians are all bunch hypocrites, wherever we may be. It simply shows the “Nigerian” in us all, as derived from our cultural history and environments that we all grew up in.
10. Finally, the way the Nigerian media has handled this incident leaves a big dent on its credibility. As far as I can see there exists no professional investigative reporter in Nigeria. A cleverly edited video clip was circulated around on the internet (CNN i-report) and the whole media went ga-ga. No one bothered to find out what the other side of the story was, including the Lagos State Governor. We all forgot that we live in Nigeria, where even video shots never tell the whole truth! Moreover, the girl’s statement established the crucial fact that the Admiral was NOT present at the point where she was beaten, and neither was he aware of the incident UNTIL the Naval ratings had “arrested” the girl and taken her into custody at the Naval Guest House. The Admiral then handled the entire episode by offering her advice in addition to getting her a shirt to cover herself up with. The way the media had carried on as if it was the Admiral that personally ordered her brutalisation leaves a lot to be desired. I still need to be further enlightened as to the offence of the Admiral on this occasion. The media never went after the names of the Naval ratings that brutalised the girl simply because such names would never sell their newspapers. They preferred to immediately use an Admiral’s name so they can make good profits – Haba!
I do hope that this article of mine would be given equal prominence like the media have been giving to all other stories concerning the incident. Mine is a completely different perspective on the issue and I stand up to be counted on the side of Rear Admiral Harry Olufemi Arogundade on this occasion. Call me a Military apologist if you wish!
I rest my case.
Thank You.
Niji
Who the hell is this ignorant joker?  |
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tpia
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I think the key question is 'What was Admiral Arogundade going to do at the guest house?' , this should teach people like him from filing young girls anyhow  true talk .  naija and the cycle of poverty sha. loudspeaker lawyers indeed.  |
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peteroby (m)
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na who be dis girl sef? the news is every where about the incident.dis one go teach her lesson say next time if she see or hear a siren from any convoy make she give way.me i no support d Naval guys but they are just doing their job.few of us know while so many Nigerians don;t know that is very risky not to make way or chase after any convoy.some of these VIP are under high risk protection and the detail are ready to get going should anything go wrong.in my kind of job what happen to the Naval chief would be seen as a very Big threat to the Principal,and come to think of it  na who position there with d camera dey record d whole thing |
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Corosive (m)
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@ congoshine
If u had your facts right u wulda knwn dat d R.adm is nt servin in Lagos, n he jst came 4 a meetin n there4 d guest house. So stop being shallow mindd talkin abt young girls (except if u aint gettin any anyway) lol!
@ sniper mk
I like d way u broke it down. It jst baffles me why Nigerians r more interested in d R.adm's head, than evn d main pple involvd. In my fomer post I said I dnt realy feel sorry 4 d girl becos if she had acted like a lady n reportd d case to d navy itself, Im sure they wulda taken action because history has shwn that the navy are very fast at prosecutin their own. Anyway at least she had made more money for d newspapers whose sales increasd momentarily by like 200%.
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anonimi
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In my fomer post I said I dnt realy feel sorry 4 d girl because if she had acted like a lady n reportd d case to d navy itself, I'm sure they wulda taken action because history has shwn that the navy are very fast at prosecutin their own.
I am sure you can give a list of such prosecutions and resulting punishment, can't you So please go ahead and give us the details here. Thanks in advance. |
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Corosive (m)
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Hw abt I give u 1. The guy who shot d okada man was nt jst dismissd bt also jaild. @anonimi mayb u shld giv me a list of navy issues dat u r aware of which were reportd 2 dem n there were no consequences. Huh!
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tpia
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@ congoshine
If u had your facts right u wulda knwn that d R.adm is nt servin in Lagos, n he jst came 4 a meetin n there4 d guest house. So stop being shallow mindd talkin about young girls (except if u aint gettin any anyway) lol!
the R Adm was only in Lagos for a meeting? In any case, he's the fall guy but the people who did the actual beating should also be revealed. They cant just go scotfree after all this mudslinging. |
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anonimi
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Hw about I give u 1. The guy who shot d okada man was nt jst dismissd bt also jaild. first, from your earlier post that i quoted one would have thought you had a long list! well, now to the only one you gave- the naval rating (abi na officer?) was jailed for how many years, if I may ask? i beleive the story was that he shot the okada man while he was pleading with him i.e. in cold blood, right or maybe u want to clarify that? In my fomer post I said I dnt realy feel sorry 4 d girl because if she had acted like a lady n reportd d case to d navy itself, this reporting that you recommend, should it have been done before, during or after she has been thoroughly flogged with horsewhips bought by a govt with her taxes just out of curiosity, do you use horsewhips also on your kids and relations/friends or only on strangers and enemies who "don't behave like ladies (or gentlemen)" |
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lucabrasi (m)
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@corosive
pls desist from making these sort of unreasonable assertions,the fact that the admiral was told after the fact and he actually interviewed the girl makes him complicit in the whole issue,he could have acted his age and superior rank by doing the appropriate thing, ill give you an example of what high moral principle means, when general diya's son was rude to a junior officer,he brought his son out even though he wasnt there when t happened and disciplined his son right in front of the junior officer, the officer was even apologising for the son,this shows that if the officer had been wrong,someone like that would have disciplined them instantly, if the admiral had done that and apportioned blame fairly then all these wouldnt have gotten out of hand,
when he blamed the girl for her part in the drama,chastising her that she could have been killed,why didnt he chastice the naval ratings as well right there and then to show fairness???
no matter what the girl did A UNIFORMED OFFICER ALL ROUND THEWORLD DOES NOT STRIPP A CIVILLIAN NAKED OR FLOG THEM ESPECIALLY IN PEACE TIME, ITS DOUBLE OR TRIPPLE WORSE WHEN THE CIVILLIAN HAPPENS TO BE A WOMAN!!PLS GET THINGS IN PERSPECTIVE,
in civilised societies like the western world,thats why you get the man moving out of the house after having a row with the woman,thats what a real man does,
in real african tradition,A REAL MAN will never lay their hands on another woman,talk less of fighting her as if they are of same strenght, right from when i was a lil kid,we all made fun of any male that fights a girl/female because we see them as weak, some cultures like the igbo culture will even see you as a she-man same as the yorubas who call ppl like that "alagbara ma mero baba ole"not sure i got it lol(loosely meaning someone thats trying to show how powerful they are when they encounter a weaker person)
lastly,pls point out a sucessfully prosecuted case in either the navy,police army e.t.c just a couple of months ago amn's son was killed in cold blood by the police,same as the group of ibo boys e.t.c
statements of these nature you are making and which the admiral made is a total disgrace to the naval institution and what they stand for, but then again what ll one expect in a force where they get promoted by connection and politics
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dayokanu (m)
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The ship that got missing was stolen by mammywater abi? No be navy people do am?
The girl didnt behave like a lady because she did not carry the car on her head in the middle of a standstill traffic situation.
Someone here has never heard of camera phone before. They got it on camera when they could when there was commotion already. Do you think people take cameras with the Madmiral?
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Ellyptical
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@Bastrin
You did not answer any of the question i threw to you on the last page.
I am tempted to sympathize with you. Not that wrong may have befallen you, but that you are not the kind of person a fair-minded society with sane people would love in its midst.
To me, thats the worst thing that can happen to someone - to reason like in a barbaric manner as your posts depict. I tell you, its worse than madness.
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rotimiorims (m)
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Why should i even think about what he girl could have done, or not done in the past; or what her father did?
I have always been impressed, and will always be, by people who stand up to stronger or numerically superior opposition. I am disgusted by those who only show hostility when their opposition is a kid or gentle person.
Still i must add that i’m not saying this because i believe all girls are ladies. What i mean is that men should try to understand that you can still be men with dignity, even if every woman chooses to behave like an Amazon hooligan that doesn’t know when to shut up.
Over a decade ago, I witnessed one guy humiliate 6 cult boys (with their don) at a party in Ikoyi. On the same night i saw a much smaller boy insulting him, and he sat there submissively.
I appreciate men like Gani Fawehinmi and Festus Keyamo because they prefer to take on the '’high and mighty’’, who weren’t so high when Abacha was alive, and weren’t so mighty when the late tyrant sounded his warnings daily on the radio. They contend with the IBBs, Obasanjos and House of Reps, not people like you and me. I wish all Nigerians can see the logic in this.
I don’t know the girl in question. Hence i must give her the benefit of the doubt. I don’t know if she’s ever been a bully herself. Don’t know if she’s the kind of girl that only respects men that treat her like a dustbin. All i know is that she stood up to several armed men. I was once a soldier (the gentle type) and i know it is a sensitive issue to engage in any kind of struggle when you are carrying a loaded rifle. It is particularly disgraceful that it is with a woman.
Many Nigerians love movies like Gladiator, Titanic and 300, but we always seem to fail to get the clear ideas being projected by these movies. Money and Power are useful things, but honor and glory make you more useful to humanity.
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Gaminechic
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Wonderful post
Its amazin that some people screaming for war on the rear admiral are the same ones beatin their girl friends and wives, insulting women any chance they get
I just hope WE ALL learn from this incident
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DippThinka (m)
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with respect to the Uzoma beating, well respected and highly intellectual individuals e.g Wole soyinka, funmi iyanda, Gov Fashola SAN, even the president and thousands of Nigerians local and international have spoken against it.
why should anybody listen to a few faceless attention seeking (@bastrin) and childhood grudge holding (@Gaminechic) individuals on nairaland.
We are moving forward small by small and we will get there
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Gaminechic
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Lol! Childhood grudge, all these Shrinks you too good!
I can never be surprised at the ability of man to miscontrue, indeed human stupidity is infinite.
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AbdnSctUK
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@Dipp thinka
I was referring to Gaminechic. If you ask me I suspect Uzoma and Gaminechic were probably colleagues at school or currently colleagues at work and she has this hidden hatred for Uzoma, hence her being sentimental. Pardon me if i'm being a little blunt, it's just my own opinion.
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abbyode (m)
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http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art200811143581387Naval ratings go wild again, kill policeman By Ademola Oni and Sebastine Ebhuomhan Published: Friday, 14 Nov 2008 Two naval ratings have been arrested by the Ogun State Command Police for allegedly killing a policeman and severely wounding another in a scuffle at a hotel in Ota. Skip to next paragraph File Mike Okiro The policemen Mr. Oladiran Abanikanda and – Adewale Nureini, were said to have been stabbed on Wednesday night after an argument over a female attendant at the hotel. Abanikanda reportedly died at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital on Thursday morning after a spirited attempt to save his life. Nureini is said to be responding to treatment at the Ota General Hospital. The Ota incident occurred less than two weeks after six naval ratings attached to the convoy of the Chief of Naval Logistics, Rear Admiral Harry Arogundade beat up and stripped a 27-year-old lady, Miss Uzoma Okere, in Lagos. Arogundade and the six naval ratings were on Wednesday summoned by the authorities of the Nigerian Navy to the Defence Headquarters over the attack on Uzoma, who is the daughter of the National Assembly Sergeant-at-Arms. About three years ago, a naval officer, Lt. Felix Odulami, shot dead a commercial motor cycle (Okada) operator in Ikeja, Lagos, for allegedly hitting his Mercedes Benz 190E. The naval authorities set up a board of inquiry to investigate the killing, but up till now the outcome is yet to be made public. The Police Area Commander of in Ota, Mr. Adeoye Oyelola, who confirmed the incident on Thursday to our correspondent on the telephone, said the two policemen were first rushed to a private hospital before being transferred to different health institutions. The area commander, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, alleged that the ratings, after committing the crime, tried to escape. He said, “A medical doctor alerted me that two of my men had been rushed to his hospital after they were stabbed. So, I had to rush there. I was told that one of the ratings objected when one of the policemen asked a lady attendant to serve him a drink. He (rating) was said to have told the constable, who was not in uniform, not to send the lady on an errand because she was his girlfriend.” “It was during the argument that followed that one of the naval ratings brought out his knife and stabbed the policeman at the back. In an attempt by another police officer to seize the knife from the rating, his colleague brought out his own knife and stabbed him.” Oyelola, however, said while one of the ratings was arrested on the spot, the other was caught ”loitering around the police station in an attempt to call for re-inforcement.” He added that some naval personnel were in the area command on Wednesday night for consultations over the incident. Oyelola‘s claims, however, differed from the uncoordinated accounts of the two ratings. They had said during a preliminary interrogation that their attempt to report an assault on them by the late Abanikanda and Nureini was frustrated by other policemen. Our correspondent in Abeokuta learnt that the case had already been reported to the office of the Inspector – General of Police, Mr. Mike Okiro. The ratings are believed to have been detained in separate cells in one of the police stations in the state capital. The Deputy Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr. Bassey Inyang, also confirmed the incident but said the case was still with the State Criminal Investigation Department. ”I have heard the case but you know it has to be properly investigated. I will not be able to say much on it now, ” Inyang said. Meanwhile, the Nigerian Bar Association on Thursday demanded sanctions against Arogundade and the six ratings that attacked Uzoma. It also deplored the detention of a magistrate and some lawyers by policemen in a court at Oji-River, Enugu State. The NBA, in a statement by its National President, Chief Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN), called for a stop to what it called “despicable violence against civilians inherent in the culture of our armed forces and the police.” The statement reads in part, ”We condemn the barbaric act against Uzoma and call on the naval command to immediately sanction the errant ratings and the naval officer under whose watch she was beaten and stripped naked in addition to paying her adequate compensation for the damages, which resulted from their action. “The senseless and horrible treatment meted out to Okere in Lagos on November 3, 2008 is one case too many. The barbarism witnessed in this case is certainly not an aberrant act.” On the Oji-River incident, the association said, “We also note and condemn the action of a detachment of the Nigeria Police Force, which detained a senior magistrate for carrying out her judicial function. “The detention of Senior Magistrate Mrs. Uche Mogboh and lawyers in her court at the behest of an Assistant Superintendent of Police, Ashabua, for making a formal order of discharge and acquittal of an accused person in the course of the performance of her judicial function is condemnable.” [Print Article]
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congoshine (m)
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@ congoshine
If u had your facts right u wulda knwn that d R.adm is nt servin in Lagos, n he jst came 4 a meetin n there4 d guest house. So stop being shallow mindd talkin about young girls (except if u aint gettin any anyway) lol!
@Corosivebrain, You are an ignoramus ! His guest house don become naval headquarters,abi? Abi dem tell you say im family no de Lagos? You are the shallow dim wited one,you are so f**king gullible. Meeting ko,meeting ni ! The man was there to file a congo & the girl's parent's prayers caught up with him
Lesson for all Aristo officers |
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meexteriox (m)
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Nigerians are funny lot.
Now we've left the issue at hand to trade personal insults, beef and all what not, forgetting the main reason for this post.
With no sentiments attached, is the Naval officer and his rats more human than the rest of us?
Was the road built for just him and his prodigals?
Until you fall victim of the brutality of men in uniform, you will never know the danger they to pose to human sanity.
Their reckless showmanship of brutality, insanity and total boycott of reason is awesom.
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javarules (m)
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please keep us posted on okere's case
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santavista
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@ Sniper_mk,
I read through your article and well documented defence on the base topic.
I have a simple question to ask and a scenario which i want your response or contribution for.
Treating mock cases are used in proper citadels of learning to simulate real life situations during high management trainees.
CASE
You are wrongly accused by your neighbour over what you did not do. He proactively claims you are the thief carting away other people's belongings in the yard/compound/estate (choice depends on you). Just yesterday night you caught the same man stealing and he begged you he would eschew his bad ways. The morning after he lays the allegation on you to checkmate if you would truly tell or keep his sins secret.
This irrational behaviour got you angry and thus you pounced on him. He pounces back. You both engage in a mild scuffle which irrespective of the weakness of your blows resulted in the death of the man (your neighbour).
Does the law have the right to charge you for murder or manslaughter?
Deep within you, it was an accident that occured on wrong accusation which you alone know.
The truth is you will be charged to court. You have committed a serious crime. All you will be pleading for is leniency in judgement.
Thus relating the above mock case to the real case study (the topic), the R/Admiral played to the gallery to have been unfortunate to have this stubborn, heady and brave babe on his right of way. The deed has been done. Imagine while dragging her she passes away? And that cameraman recorded it as contained on that short clip we all saw, and the story still remains that her demise was caused because she did not let the most revered Aro or his bodydogs their right of way.
Let us detach our judgement from the persons or characters involved in this reality movie. But sensibly argue if it was right for a Nigerian to be so treated by another without having committed any heinous crime. More people are being harrassed by these miscreants in uniforms because nothing has been done since this incident happened. A journalist manhandled, a policeman killed by men of the same Navy all in a spate of 2 weeks.
Whatever the devil or demon that possessed Uzoma on the said day must have been informed or sent by those unjustly treated by miltary men(Her pa inclusive) in the past. I still maintain that Oga Aro had an opportunity to save his head and receive an applause even after the beating which would have made Uzoma seem stupid for being stubborn or disrespectful to the sweet blarin of intimidating siren. All he needed to do was to stylishly calm her down, appease her with cool words at the same time advice her against her attitude. This would have silenced all of us. Instead he chose to ride in pride, arrogance and smugness. Boasting about how she would have been killed. Despite the fact that they were alone in the room.
Tolerance is key. For a change in our society we must learn to accomodate other people's excesses. She received a price for her stubborness and intolerance(severe beating) the R/Admiral must also pay the price for his too.
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sniper_mk
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Peeps, these are just replies to Niji's initial mail, and not my persornal views, ok
Niji,
I don’t usually respond to these sort of articles but I’ve followed this news develop over the past few days and I do feel its time we put these sort of incidents in Nigeria’s past. Given that you stated upfront that you were not holding brief for your acquaintance, Admiral Arogundade, I couldn’t disagree more with the views you’ve espoused at considerable length in your article. I’ve deliberately refrained from circulating this more widely and only copying in a few people. Just taking up your numbered comments and observations in turn:
Comments
1. I never knew that the Nigerian Navy was responsible for controlling traffic on the public highway but that is not necessarily the issue. More worryingly, you appear to suggest that it is acceptable for a uniformed military man to mercilessly horsewhip a defenceless 27-year old woman, irrespective of her behaviour, but it is a crime for her to hold on to the whip and to retaliate! If a supposedly disciplined military man is prepared to act in a barbaric manner, then they must be prepared to be subject to barbaric behaviour too.
2. The almighty Admiral might not have been at the scene but his ratings obviously believed they must have been acting in a manner that he finds acceptable or else they wouldn’t have been proud to tell him about the incident. What does that tell you about the Admiral’s leadership of his men?
3. Are you suggesting that it is ok for military men to ‘teach her a lesson’ for obstinacy by whipping her on the street? What about self-discipline and respect for the uniform they are wearing? How does this make them any different from motor park touts and thugs?
4. Again, I’m not aware that the Nigerian Navy had the right to arrest a civilian on a public street. In most civilised places in the world, the military report any problems with civilians to the police who are the appropriate authorities. It’s not their job to enforce law and order on the street. The Admiral suggesting that she’s lucky not to have been killed reflects his lack of judgement and misunderstanding of the role of the military. It’s unfortunate that someone in his position should make such an utterance that exposes scant disregard to the sanctity of life. If you see this as an act of fatherly advice, I wonder what he’ll have done if he was upset!
5. I fail to understand what makes it wrong to challenge anyone simply because they are wearing a uniform and why it is wrong for an ordinary person to shout at an Admiral after being beaten by his men. If someone supposed to be matured enough to lead men into battle gets frustrated because a young girl is shouting at him, what will he do if he’s facing bullets on the war front?
6. I certainly wouldn’t be remorseful to an Admiral whose men had just horsewhipped me. Remorseful that she didn’t get whipped enough?
Observations
1. What the Admiral did wrong was for not apologising for his men’s misbehaviour and offering assistance to the woman. He’s also guilty for failing to instil in his men that this sort of behaviour is unacceptable.
2. I agree with you that Arogundade didn’t give himself sirens and ratings to follow him everywhere, even when he’s going to the navy guest house for some pepper-soup, rest, recreation (and other things that follow after). However, there is a wider issue about whether anyone except ambulances with people requiring urgent medical attention and the police on real emergency to protect the population against criminals should have these sirens in the first place.
3. You seem to make quite specific statements about someone that you have never met, calling her a beast and a thug. How will you react if you yourself were horsewhipped in this way? Would you politely thank your assailants for ‘teaching you a lesson’ and placidly continue on your journey. I don’t know what I would do in the same circumstances but I know I wouldn’t be saying thank you to the beasts!
4. The fact that our democracy is only 9 year old is no reason why we need to hold the military in reverence in perpetuity. I’d like to know how many wars this Admiral and his men have fought to protect anyone – the simple answer is a big fat zero as Nigeria has never been involved in a naval conflict in its history.
5. If they act like mad dogs in this manner then they deserve to be called worse names than this.
6. If Admiral is proud of his and his men’s behaviour, he shouldn’t be afraid of being reported to the president by Fashola. That is what accountability is all about.
7. Are you suggesting that we all hail thuggish behaviour by naval officers?
8. The last time I checked, Yar’adua was C-in-C and can use his discretion to query anyone, including an Admiral, under his chain of command. Are you saying that Arogundade is above the law?
9. I don’t wish to see Arogundade shot simply to be held responsible for his action and those of the men under his command.
10. You have a go at the media for reporting the incident but nowhere do you suggest that the video we’ve all seen is fake. Even if it doesn’t cover the whole length of the incident, it’s clear that what is shown is unacceptable under any circumstances. Is this a case of shooting the messenger?
Finally, a word of advice for you as a friend. If Arogundade was my family, friend or acquaintance, I will be telling him now to do two things. Firstly, he should come out with a full and unreserved apology to the young lady for his and his men’s behaviour. Secondly, he should offer his resignation with immediate effect to his superiors for bringing the military to disrepute. I understand that you know Arogundade personally and you are surprised that the whole world has turned to vilify a man you know as decent and honourable. Please, pause and ask yourself why. Is it because everyone has conspired to drag his name in the mud or are you missing something?
What you and his friend, Lanre Oshodi, who claimed to be with him at the time of the incident, are doing is trying to defend the indefensible. You might say that Arogundade is not the first senior military man whose ratings have horsewhipped innocent civilians and it’s unfair on him. This doesn’t make it right and is akin to the argument made by anyone caught for corruption in Nigeria that ‘why pick on me as I’m not the only corrupt person in the country’. This practice has to stop and it has to start with someone and unfortunately for Arogundade, he’s the one in the frame.
Arogundade will gain more respect if he pursues this honourable path and ‘martyrs’ himself. If this leads to less Nigerians being brutalised by uniformed men in future, then it would have been a worthwhile sacrifice. Sitting tight and holding on to power like a leech until, he’s kicked out is the hall mark of a charlatan. He’s had enough benefits from the national purse already – trained, paid and provided opportunities that most people can only dream of at public expense and rising to the rank of Admiral despite not fighting one day of proper war. What more does he want? He’ll be on his salary for life anyway and his pension will never be delayed.
A. Alao
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Corosive (m)
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@meexteriox
U r right, the whole sh*t is now between nairalanders, I guess it's time I stopped replying this thread cause as it is, we r only goin to create enemity here. Whatever we say wont determine the outcome of the matter. So, I rest my case, no hard feelings to anybody. Ciao!
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santavista
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@ Sniper_mk,
Sorry for the mix up. Guess my reply should have been directed at Niji.
A Alao replied very well.
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manu4laif
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Very interesting case over the last 2 weeks and I'm thrilled at the sense of outrage. The crux really is " WHERE DOES THE RIGHT OF MEN IN UNIFORM(and positions of authority) STOP AND THE RIGHTS OF THE CITIZEN BEGIN." In Nigeria , years of military rule have traumatised the citizenry . Even Man O War and company security guards terrorise people. In many instances we(yes we) JUST WALK AWAY BECAUSE IT DOES NOT CONCERN US. Arogundade may be a "perfect gentleman" as those who know him have tried so hard to point out but Abacha's friends said even more complimentary things of the late general. My advice is to always put yourself in the others shoes . If your wife or mother was brutalised will it feel less painful when you hear that she actually first abused the beasts who did so. Or would she have deserved it. For me we have once again seen the barbarism/lawlessness of MEN IN UNIFORM(and those in positions of authority) which we witness daily on our roads,with our land, in our businesses,etc Uzoma? Heroine? Maybe by default. I have always prayed that children of well placed Nigerians will become the AGENTS OF CHANGE which we all desire (AND HAVE AN INALIENABLE RIGHT TO) but which our rulers deprive us of or simply choose to ignore. I am outraged by this incident but this is NOT the worst case of molestation/barbarism by men in uniform(some others have actually resulted in death!). Today local government thugs colluding with Policemen waylay/extort money from drivers of branded vehicles on our highways but nothing is done because the child of a governor has not yet been maimed or killed(yes people have died trying the escape these guys) . Tomorrow when it happens (as it surely will when those who should stop it NOW don't, we will all scream blue murder) My joy is simply that MAYBE these cowards will no longer get away easily with such actions again. Just maybe.  Whether the Admiral or his men will receive the punishment people expect(or that they deserve) is one thing. The important thing is that the world is watching how we handle this and people can hopefully no longer get away (easily) with such barbarism . That in itself is some victory. |
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lucabrasi (m)
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@dippthinka nice one  @all i think its time the government diverted the nigerian forces into something productive,during the china earthquake,the soldiers and the reserves e.t.c were used in constructing make shift shelters and co or dinations helping the police e.t.c in peacetime like we have in nigeria,i think its a drain on the resources paying idle soldiers and pot bellied officers mess generals the times of coups and free money, the ibb and abacha,buhari e.t.c time has made them lazy,indiscipliens,uncouth and of absolutely no moral standing at all, the devil finds work for idle hands, when a soldier who has been trained for war has no job and are more or less loitering about,they end up turning against the pople closest to them which is the average nigerian,in these case a female |
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blesd man (m)
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The guy disgraced the navy for once.Unexpected.Yar adua should deal with him.I trust his judgement.
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graceman1 (m)
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Sniper_mk, Santavista See what this guy Niji Fadipe has to say [/i]Nigerians!
Always sentiments before reason.
To wit, I have neither ever asked for, nor ever received a favor from the Admiral.
But feel free to call me a Military Apologist.
You are all ensconced in your terraced UK houses and can pass any judgement you want. When every Nigerian is hailed for beating up a uniformed soldier in broad daylight and the wahala starts, I wonder whether people like you would buy tickets and fly down home to come and fight for us civilians? It is easy to shout "kill him kill him" from a safe distance. If people like you all had to "check out" for economic reasons, I wonder what will happen in a case of war.
Try tell your wives to beat up even a Uniformed British Police/Military officer in broad daylight just because
she was assaulted first - and lets see the consequences.
We all remember the case of the farmer who attacked & shot 2 robbers that invaded his house/farm somewhere in the midlands I think some years back. Was he not found guilty by the court for taking the law into his own hands?
That to me, is a Sanitised environment.
I and my siblings were brought up never to even try the idea of fighting with Danfo Conductors over change, talkless of a Uniformed Military Man.
If we all hate the Nigerian Military so much, then this specific incident is not the right one to latch on to!
Say what you will, that girl, to me is just an AREA GIRL!
[i] This is my reply: Niji thinks because we are UK based we do not have a say, when you have soldiers carring whips what do you think they will be used for? You must be naive if you think this is the first time they have done this before. I witnessed an incident myself, though no one was beaten but the military guys were kicking and banging vehicles that could not move because they were stuck in traffic, anything could have sparked an incident, some peoples vehicles could have been damaged or someone hurt. I pray that you Niji or your sister or any member of your family does not find themselves in this same position, whether they will sit there and allow yourself to be beaten, maybe you will have the same view. |
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tosynox (f)
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in my own opinion the girl should have allowed them pass atleast it would have spared her the embarassment. in any case her action also helped us (nigerians) in discovering the animalistic tendecies of those in uniform.even at that, the naval ratings shouldn't have beaten her considering the fact that she's a female and has her human rights too. hmm, i hope justice prevails or else,
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blesd man (m)
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The guy disgraced the navy for once.Unexpected.Yar adua should deal with him.I trust his judgement.
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