Woman threatens legal action against Edo government over alleged miscarriage

Oghosa Ejemai, who claimed to have lost a seven-week old pregnancy to alleged agent of the Edo State government, has threatened to institute a N100 million legal suit against the government.

The victim disclosed this during a press briefing by the state chapter of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Benin City.

The 38 years old woman and a 2005 graduate from the Federal Polytechnic, Auchi, alleged that the brutality meted on her was personally supervised by the state commissioner for transport, Isimeme Iriogbe, along with the staff of the ministry.

When contacted, the commissioner alleged that the complainant was trading along the walkway and had attacked officials who came to clear the walkway of traders and their wares.

According to Iriogbe, “she was trading along the walkway and she accosted the teeming officials that were clearing the walkway. She almost tore the dress of one of the women who was removing the wares. By going to the PDP for her press conference, it means her blocking the walkway was political.

“I expect her to be at the court and we shall meet there because the court is for everybody. I acted decently and I did not beat her.”

Ejemai, who narrated her ordeal to newsmen at the PDP Secretariat in Benin City, said: “She was in her shop, 14 Mission Road Benin City where she sells provision and assorted drinks when all of a sudden the transport commissioner and his team swooped on her shop with the allegation that she displayed her wares on the walkway.”

The victim posited that as she was dragging the crates with them, she saw one fair man who she later understand to be the commissioner for transport, by name Isimeme Iriogbe.

“I thought that I would get protection from him, but unfortunately, he joined them to beat me up, gave me slaps and hit my chest with a sharp object. He was pulling me here and there, trying to push me into a waiting vehicle and ordered that I should be arrested.

“A crowd later gathered at the Mission Road, with so many people asking if he wants to kill me and what was my offence that he has to treat me the way he did. He was still beating me, dragging me along and when they saw the large crowd, they started to shoot into the air and disappeared one by one,” she said.

She alleged that before her wares were carted away by the government officials she was given the beaten of her life after which she started bleeding from her private part and was unconscious.

She explained further, “when I got home that evening I was taken to the hospital and treated, and I went to the Oba Market Police Station to report the incident and the police took my statement and even went to the scene of the incident.

“But for two days I did not opened my shop because I was sick all over my body. However, the third day, I started bleeding and went to the Central Hospital Benin, where it was confirmed by a doctor that I had lost my seven weeks pregnancy.

“After I was discharged from the hospital I was invited to the ministry of transport to collect my seized goods only to discover that half of them were stolen and I complained to them nobody answered me till now, and the police I reported the matter to are not helping matters either as no action has been taken till this moment.”

She added that the permanent secretary in the ministry said they were acting on orders from above to let her take the items, and that she was lucky that they were giving them back to her as they always destroyed items removed from traders.

While condemning the action of the state government official, the PDP recalled that Oghosa Ojemai’s case was a pathetic one that the party would not close its eyes to, promising to foot the legal bill of the victim.