The relationship between Mr. Steve Midalah, an Abuja-based computer engineer, and the wife of a former Chief of Naval Staff, Mrs. Treasure Samuel-Afolayan, was cordial despite the fact that it was a master-servant relationship.

Between 2003 and 2006 Steve was the Personal Assistant to Afolayan. But the once sweet relationship has turned sour following a disagreement over a parcel of land belonging to the former chief of naval staff’s wife in Abuja.

After Steve could not be located to explain what happened to Afolayan’s land, the former President of the Naval Officers’ Wife Association allegedly stormed Steve’s children school in company with some naval ratings and policemen on April 27, 2010.

The children, nine-year-old son, Favour, and seven-year-old brother, Marvel,who attend Trinity Day Anglican Nursery and Primary School, Gwagwalada, Abuja, were allegedly abducted while class work were still going on and were put behind bars at Gwagwalada Police Station.

More than one month after the incident, the children, who referred to Afolayan as “mummy” said they were still traumatised by their experience and had vowed never to trust anybody again.

Favour told PUNCH METRO’s correspondents that, “One day, Mummy (Afolayan) came to our school when the school was about to close. She asked me whether I knew her and she asked me to mention her name and I said I knew her as TJ’s mother (Afolayan’s daughter).

“She told the people outside that she wanted to take us to our house (about five minutes journey to the school) in order to know the place. So we went to our house. But my mother was not at home. She now kept two policemen in our house.

“We turned back from the house to go and look for my mummy and we met her on the road. That was how they took all of us to the police station. We spent one day (night) at the police station. She said that if they tell us to come back home (release us), my daddy is not going to show up at the police station.

“My daddy now sent some of his friends to the police station (to bail us), but they refused to allow us to go. So, we slept there in our uniforms.

“But my daddy still refused to show up the following day. When we came back home, they said they will transfer the case to Kuje (police station). My mummy spent three nights in Gwagwalada and four nights in Kuje.”

In an email sent to our correspondents, Steve said the problem started in 2006 when he lost his modest building in Kuje to the demolition squad of the erstwhile Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai.

He said as he was preparing to move into his new house also in Abuja, he was involved in a ghastly motor accident that made him insolvent.

“I met Mrs. Treasure Samuel-Afolayan through my bosom friend, Joseph Anokam, her brother. I was Anokam’s Best Man when he got married” he said.

He said that his inability to settle his hospital bill made him to sell his new house. Although he was silent on the contentious land in issue, Steve said his refusal to continue to work with Afolayan after his recovery from the accident was the major issue.

“The woman has been haunting me and my family asking for N3m for a land she voluntarily gave me, but I have told her I don’t have money yet and even reminded her that she did not pay me for the services I rendered to her,” Steve said, adding that Afolayan should seek legal redress if she was sure of her fact.

Paulyn said she cohabited with maggots and crawling reptiles when she was detained for seven days, adding that she went through a most dehumanising experience for her husband’s transgressions.

“It is obvious now that there is a threat to my life and that of members of my family. Let her stop using military personnel to harass a civilian and his innocent wife and children. I hereby appeal to all human right agencies to come to the aid of my family and stop this injustice against us,” Paulyn said.

However, Afolayan said she neither harassed the Midalahs with naval ratings nor influenced their seven-day ordeal in the police stations, adding that the development was provoked by Steve’s betrayal and ungrateful posture.

Afolayan said, “I have never seen an ingrate like that. This was a boy I entrusted with everything I had. How could I have helped somebody and the person now turned against me? It was not navy men that arrested his wife and children. It was the police and I cannot be held responsible for their detention.

“The police said they were looking for the man, because I had reported him. It is true I went to the children’s school. But it was the police that arrested them.

“I gave him a parcel of land for free and asked him to reserve the remaining half for me, but he went ahead and sold it for N4m without my consent. I asked him to come and pay for it, but he has gone into hiding. My husband and I gave them more than N300,000 when he had accident. Let him pay my money.”

When one of our correspondents contacted the Director of Information of the Nigerian Navy, Cmdr. David Nabaida, he said that the naval authorities were not aware of the development, adding that the naval men would be punished if they actually abducted the children.

“I have not been able to confirm it. Right now, I can’t tell you anything. I can only make comments after my findings,” he said.

Also, the Police Public Relations Officer of the FTC command, Mr. Moshhod Jimoh, on the telephone on Wednesday, said that he was not aware of the development. But on Thursday, he said that he “needed time” to contact the Gwagwalada Police Division to get the details of what transpired there before making comments.

Oh! What a family affair! Sugar mummy arresting sugar grand children because sugar son refused to turn up.

What a nice headline.