Canada’s new exiles

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Read Time:3 Minute, 33 Second

Just days ago, Canada decided to deport Saeed Jama to Somalia. He was convicted of possession of crack for purposes of trafficking and possession of stolen goods. Immigration Minister Jason Kenney remarked that Jama “should not have chosen a life of violent crime.” For the record, Jama was not convicted of any crime of violence. He finished serving his sentence more than three years ago and has not re-offended.

This past March, with much less media attention, Canada deported another young man, Jama Warsame, who shares a remarkably similar story to Saeed Jama.

Both men were born in Saudi Arabia to Somali refugees, arrived in Canada as children, have never set foot in Somalia, and can’t speak a Somali language. Saudi Arabia does not grant citizenship on the basis of birth on Saudi soil, so neither are Saudi citizens. They are Somali citizens because they were born to Somali citizens. Their parents never applied to obtain Canadian citizenship on their behalf. Both men accumulated criminal convictions. It is not uncommon for immigrants and refugees who arrive as children to assume they are citizens, or never put their minds to the question until the government moves to deport them.

Canada proceeded with Warsame’s deportation to Somalia in March 2012, despite the fact that doing so violated Canada’s legal obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In 2011, the UN Human Rights Committee unanimously found that Canada’s proposed deportation of Warsame would violate his right to life and right to freedom from cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.

In relation to the right to life, the UN accepted that, as a Canadian kid, dropped in the middle of Somalia, with no language skills, and limited clan or family support, Warsame would be a sitting duck for forced recruitment by armed groups such as Al-Shabaab and Hizbul Islam and even the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and their allied forces. In short, he faced a real risk of real harm.

A majority of the UN Human Rights Committee also found that the deportation would breach Warsame’s right to family life, as well as his right to enter and remain in his “own country.” One might wonder how Canada can be Warsame’s own country when he isn’t a Canadian citizen. The majority of the Human Rights Committee reasoned that in all functional respects, he belongs to Canada: he was brought here as a child and his formative years were spent in Canada.

Metaphors can be risky, but here we might analogize the situation to adoption: who is Warsame’s or Jama’s national parent — the country from which he has a blood connection, but has never seen, or the country that raised him since childhood? The Human Rights Committee sensibly chose the latter.

At present, Canadian law effectively permits the automatic deportation of non-citizens convicted and sentenced to two years imprisonment or more, with no consideration of the personal circumstances of the individual or compelling reasons not to deport. Under proposed legislation (Bill C-43), the government will reduce that interval to six months. To give one an idea of the kind of offences that can lead to six month sentences, consider that under the recent omnibus crime bill, possessing six marijuana plants now carries a mandatory minimum six month sentence.

If Bill C-43 passes, it will not matter whether the individual arrived last year or 30 years ago, as an infant or as an adult, or whether the person ever set foot in their country of nationality — six months and you’re out. Canada should not be deporting long term permanent residents without independent consideration of not only the offence, but also to the individual’s connection to Canada and the real impact of deportation.

Governments around the world have abandoned the barbaric practice of exiling citizens. Whatever one thinks about Jama and Warsame, they are products of Canada, and sending them to a country they have never set foot in, a country so dangerous that Canadians are advised not to enter, is vindictive and inhumane. It is not deportation; it is exile.

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Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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Bartering may boost food supply for rural Kenyans

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Read Time:42 Second

Nyeri, Kenya

It may be dismissed by Kenya’s middle classes and elites as primitive, but farmer Leah Wambu, is convinced that bartering promises a new way of protecting rural food supplies as climate change takes hold.

Swapping one type of goods for another instead of for cash is an age-old practice. For a growing number of people like 69-year-old Wambui, from Nyeri, it is gaining new appeal as a way to combat increasing food scarcity in rural areas such as hers in central Kenya.

“If I need a chicken, I take a basketful of maize to the market and look for someone interested in my goods,” says the cheerful grandmother. “If we agree the goods meet each others’ worth, then I will trade my grain for the chicken.”

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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Kenyans stranded in Saudi Arabia return home

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Read Time:1 Minute, 9 Second

NAIROBI; KENYA: The last batch of Kenyan women, who were stranded in Saudi Arabia for months where they had gone to seek employment as domestic workers, have arrived back home.

The group of 29 women returned on Monday after being stranded in Riyadh for months. It brought to 72 the number of women who have so far arrived back in Nairobi since September following intervention by Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka, who visited Riyadh in August.

 

The women arrived aboard Air Arabia after the Saudi Government paid their tickets.

“This is the third group of the girls to arrive home. It has been difficult for us here,” said an official at the Kenyans embassy in Riyadh.

More than 80 Kenyans had been staying at a transitional detention camp in Riyadh.
The group left Kenya with hopes of securing employment in the Middle East, but later got stranded and called on the Government to rescue them.

Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary Thuita Mwangi said in August a container where the victims were held was set up after the number of distressed Kenyan workers in Saudi Arabia skyrocketed.

He said between January and April this year, more than 200 Kenyans had sought help from the embassy after falling out with their employers.

The PS explained that it was impractical to accommodate such high numbers at the official residence of Kenya’s ambassador.

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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Kenya 7s without captain

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Read Time:1 Minute, 27 Second

THE Kenya Rugby Sevens team will feature in the second leg of the HSBC sevens series without team captain

 

 

Captain of Kenya Humphrey Kayange celebrates the win on day two of the Wellington IRB Sevens during the Bowl match final between Kenya and Tonga at Westpac Stadium on February 5, 2011 in Wellington, New Zealand. (Photo: Marty Melville/Getty Images)

The team departed on Sunday November 25 for Dubai.

Kenya is in Pool A alongside Gold Coast champions Fiji, Spain and Scotland.

Lavin Asego and Sidney Ashioya make a return to the team that was named on Thursday morning at the KRFUEA grounds in Nairobi. The two missed out on the first leg in Australia owing to personal commitments and injury.

Collins Injera, Biko Adema and Oscar Ouma will feature in Dubai, returning to Nairobi while Fabian Olando, Billy Odhiambo and Oscar Ayodi will feature in the Port Elizabeth squad.

The Kenya Rugby Union’s Director of Elite Performance Philip Jalang’o while naming the squad said, “We anticipate a good performance from the team as they have prepared well. We are aware of the challenges faced in every leg of the series and the onus is on the players to put up consistent performances throughout the season. We believe the team we have selected is up to the task, this is the best team we have chosen for the upcoming assignments.”

Kenya Rugby Union Chairman Mwangi Muthee thanked the team’s sponsor Kenya Airways for their continued support. He said, “Kenya Sevens are no longer participants on the series. We are going to Dubai and Port Elizabeth as serious contenders and I call upon all Kenyans to rally behind the team.”

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Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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UK Pakistanis to build Malala girls schools across country

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Read Time:1 Minute, 58 Second

LAHORE: A group of leading Pakistanis, based in the United Kingdom (UK), has embarked upon a project to build a school to honour Malala Yousufzai for her vision and courage to promote education.

Ahmad Shahzad, the Chairman of Management Committee of the Human Rights Society of Pakistan (UK Chapter), disclosed this in an interview with The News.

He said Malala had become a symbol of girls’ education not just in Pakistan but in the world. “Malala has given a cause to our nation that we can educate our youngsters in order to fight terrorism,” Shahzad, OBE, said while adding that education was the best tool to defeat terrorism.

Sharing details, the former Mayor of Brent, Ahmad Shahzad, said the first school would be named after Malala and it would be built at Malala’s birth place near Swat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He said his visit to Pakistan was part of the efforts for the project and the Pakistan chapter of the HRSP, headed by S M Zafar, had given a go-ahead for the project which would be a gift to Malala.

“We already have pledges for the project,” he said and added, “Once the campaign for the project matures, it would be expanded with the Malala Girls’ Schools in different parts of the country.”

He said that Lord Nazir Ahmed and Lord Qurban Hussain were the patrons of the school project, maintaining that leading businessmen, doctors, lawyers and people from different walks of life, living in the United Kingdom, had assured him support to the project. He talked about the significance of education and said that Malala had quite courageously highlighted the cause of education, especially the girls’ education.

Ahmad Shahzad, OBE, said Pakistanis in the UK had very deep concerns about terrorism which, he termed, a war on innocent people by the extremists in Pakistan. “The overseas Pakistanis have lost many relatives in unfortunate incidents of terrorism in Pakistan,” he said.

Ahmad Shahzad, OBE, said the HRSP would also build schools and name them after the friends of Malala Yousufzai, including Kainat and Shazia, who were injured during the attack on Malala in October.

Ahmad Shahzad said the project was also being linked with former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who was presently the United Nations Special Envoy for Global Education.

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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Kenya yet to secure rights host 2013 CECAFA

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Read Time:1 Minute, 32 Second

Kenya is yet to secure the rights to host the 2013 CECAFA senior challenge Cup.

CECAFA secretary general Nicholas Musonye said they have not decided on who will host the tournament, saying Kenya and Rwanda were fronted as potential hosts and no further decision was made.

He said, it was agreed that whoever of the two countries comes up with sponsors first, will be given the hosting rights.

Football Kenya Federation Chairman Sam Nyamweya told journalist on Friday after the CECAFA Congress that Kenya had been unanimously given the hosting rights by the congress.

Musonye said the decision on who will host the regional tournament next year will be made later on when the two countries present their list of sponsors.

Rwanda said they can have a list of sponsors ready as early as two weeks.

Kenya had been given the rights to host this year’s tournament but the sponsors forced CECAFA to shift the annual tournament to Kampala, Uganda.

Elsewhere, Uganda Cranes’ custodian Abel Dhaira has been ruled out of the CECAFA Senior Challenge tournament after a scan indicated a cracked jaw from his collision with Harambee Stars’ striker Rama Salim during their tournament opener on Saturday.

A communication from the Cranes’ camp indicates that the keeper has been ruled out of action for a fortnight which automatically locks him out of this year’s action.

Uganda Cranes proceeded to carry the entire three points from the Group ‘B’ opener with Godfrey Kizito punishing Kenyans from a free-kick to ensure a 1-0 win at the Namboole Stadium.

Uganda will next face Ethiopia on Tuesday who also won the group match against South Sudan at the same venue in the tournament opener while Kenya take on South Sudan in the other match.

Don’t miss the action live on KBC channel one and Radio Taifa.

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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Jonathan Tasks Nigeria Customs On Corruption

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Read Time:3 Minute, 47 Second

President Goodluck Jonathan on Monday urged the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to correct “the lingering perception of corruption and fraud’’ in the service.

Declaring open the 2012 Annual Comptroller General of Customs Conference in Katsina, Jonathan acknowledged that the monthly revenue generation of the service had tripled from N30 billion to N100 billion.

Represented by Vice President Namadi Sambo, the president said that the ongoing reforms in the service had brought about “greater efficiency’’ but more needed to be done on corruption and fraud.

“In line with our administration’s zero tolerance for corruption, the customs service must constantly examine itself by weeding out corrupt men and officers whose activities tarnish the image of the service.

“You must faithfully abide by the principles of good governance, which encapsulates transparency and integrity.’’

The president also urged the service not to relent in its laudable role of facilitating trade, border protection and security of the nation.

He said the Federal Government appreciated the efforts of the service in preventing the proliferation of small and light weapons in Nigeria and pledged that the government would continue to give the required support to check the activities of those involved in the illicit trade.

He, however, called for increased collaboration between the service and other customs bodies across the world in the fight against “persistent smuggling and criminal activities’’ at entry ports.

“Constant networking and exchange of vital information with sister agencies will not only ensure easy detection, it will also guarantee the reduction of high risk shipments in the international supply chain.’’

On the theme of the week-long conference, “Borders Divide, Customs Connects’’, Jonathan urged conference participants to make the interest of Nigerians paramount.

He said discussions at the conference must seek innovative ways to ensure that “our borders do not distance us from sub-regional, regional and international trade.’’

He advised that borders should connect individuals and the nations to the economic benefits of global trade and ensure security.

In a goodwill message, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar highlighted the issue of officers killed in the line of duty as a result of insurgency in some parts of the country.

He urged the conference to address this and also the public perception of the service and professionalism.

Atiku, a former customs officer, said that although the public associated the service with corruption, “I cannot reconcile why retried officers happen to be the poorest after they leave the service’’.

“Transparency is the greatest antidote against corruption,’’ he stressed.

He commended the introduction of the single window system aimed at reducing the time and number of documents needed to transact business in Nigerian ports.

On professionalism, Atiku criticised what he called “short training schedule’’ for new recruits
in the service.

He recalled that when he was recruited into the service in 1969, they trained for almost two years,
“but I hear today that people undergo training for only three months.

“You must train yourselves properly and you must start by recruiting the right candidates.’’

Earlier, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Alhaji Abdullahi Dikko, described the year 2012 as a watershed for the service.

He highlighted the decision by the government to return Destination Inspection Regime (DIR), previously outsourced to contractors, to the service from Dec. 31, 2012.

He assured stakeholders that the Nigeria Customs was ready to assume all functions of the service providers contracted by the government to provide scanning and risk management support under the DIR.

“The bold decision by government to return to the service, its statutory responsibilities is a function of the confidence Mr President has both in the leadership and capabilities of the service.’’

Dikko, who assumed leadership of the service in 2009, highlighted some of his achievements.

He said the present management had enhanced the remuneration of an average officer and had sustained a moral rebirth to enhance fiscal discipline and integrity.

He noted that the service, under his watch, had consolidated on service delivery by developing an indigenous database cargo clearance system known as Nigeria Integrated Customs Information System (NICIS).

The customs boss added that the service had concluded negotiations on Customs Mutual Administration Assistance Agreement with customs administrations in South Africa, Turkey and the U.S.

According to him, the agreement will assist in information sharing on commercial fraud. (NAN)

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Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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Nigeria seeks to resume production of yellow fever vaccine

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Read Time:2 Minute, 55 Second

Minister of Health Onyebuchi Chukwu says Nigeria is seeking the support of Global Alliance Vaccines Immunisation (GAVI) to resume the production of yellow fever vaccine.

Chukwu disclosed this in an interview on the outcome of the just concluded World Health Organisation African Regional Meeting on Polio held in Luanda, Angola.

He said that the country had also solicited support toward the introduction of new rotavirus and human papillomavirus vaccines.

The minister said that the support became necessary given the need to strengthen routine immunisation in the country.

Rotavirus vaccines protect children from rotaviruses, which are the leading causes of severe diarrhea among infants and young children, while human papillomavirus vaccine is used for the treatment of cervical cancer.

“What we discussed was to review the state of immunisation in Nigeria; the support that GAVI is giving to Nigeria; the possibility of introducing some additional new vaccines such as the router virus and the human papillomavirus vaccine for cancer of the cervix; and also the need to support local industries; we have at least one company that is WHO-prequalified as manufacturing syringes.

“GAVI says that there is room for them to be supported in terms of been patronised for their products. We also looked at the issue of Nigeria resuming the production of yellow fever vaccines; and again GAVI will be visiting Nigeria next one week or so;  we are going to hold discussions on whether they are going to give us some support to move towards being able to produce the yellow fever vaccine in Nigeria.’’

Chukwu expressed concern over the refusal by some Nigerians to accept the polio vaccine, but assured that government would strive towards the total elimination of polio.

He said WHO and other development partners were working toward reviewing the polio situation in Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola and the Republic of Chad.

“Nigeria made its presentation, re-emphasising the new emergency plan for polio eradication in the country, the result so far this year shows that there is indeed a progressive downward trend in the number of cases that are being reported.

“In Oct., two cases were reported and that brought the total for this year to 101 cases of wild polio virus transmission; but since Nov. we have not had any single report, which underscores the fact that with improved surveillance, with the new plan, we progressively reached the peak in July.

“But now that we are enjoying the benefits of that work, the numbers of cases is dropping and we expect that it is going to drop to zero.

“And of course the target as Mr President declared after meeting with the endemic states, endemic local governments and stakeholders in Abuja, is that certainly Nigeria is looking forward to 2013 as when we should achieve zero transmission of polio.’’

According to the minister, delegates at the meeting discussed the required funding mechanism, gaps as well as what was on ground with regards to vaccinators and how well such vaccinators were being supervised and whether or not their welfare needed to be improved.

Chukwu said that emphasis was made on the need to strengthen routine immunisation, stressing that the Midwives Services Scheme (MSS) was one of Nigeria’s approach to boosting routine immunisation.

Chukwu appealed to international development partners to support African countries financially, adding that the issue of not receiving supplies of vaccines even after payment had been made, remained a very critical factor.

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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Attack Frees Nigeria Police Inmates, Leaves 2 Dead

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Read Time:3 Minute, 5 Second

Gunmen attacked a major police station near Nigeria’s capital Monday that holds members of a radical Islamist sect, freeing prisoners and killing two police officers in the latest assault on the nation’s beleaguered security forces.

The attack on the Special Anti-Robbery Squad’s station near Abuja came as the death toll for suicide car bombings Sunday at a major military base rose Monday to at least 30 people killed, a hospital official said. While the sect known as Boko Haram has yet to claim the attacks, both strikes bear similarities to other assaults carried out by a group the Nigerian government seems unable to stop.

The attack on the police station began around 2 a.m. Monday, with a “large number” of gunmen killing the officers and allowing about 30 prisoners inside the facility to escape, federal police spokesman Frank Mba said in a statement. Two suspected gunmen were arrested after the attack and 25 of the prisoners have been captured, Mba said.

Authorities said none of those who escaped were terrorism suspects and that the five still at large were being held on suspicion of being armed robbers.

An investigation into the attack has begun, Mba said, while the nation’s top police commander has ordered “water-tight security around all government and police-related facilities nationwide.”

The robbery squad’s station has come under international scrutiny after Amnesty International published a report this month describing the facility as a former slaughterhouse where chains still hang from the ceiling. Amnesty’s report, which included allegations of Boko Haram suspects being abused and held indefinitely without charges, estimated more than 100 suspected sect members are held at the station. At the time of the report’s release, police officials said they would investigate Amnesty’s claims.

Boko Haram, whose name means “Western education is sacrilege” in the Hausa language of Nigeria’s north, has demanded the release of all its captive members and has called for strict Shariah law to be implemented across the entire country. The sect has killed both Christians and Muslims in their attacks, as well as soldiers and security forces.

The group, which speaks to journalists in telephone conference calls at times of its choosing, could not be immediately reached for comment Monday.

The sect is blamed for killing more than 760 people this year alone, according to an Associated Press count. Western diplomats and military officials say the sect has loose ties to both al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb and Somalia’s al-Shabab, while also offering fighters to join Islamists now controlling northern Mali. That has led to worries the group will grow only more violent as time goes on.

On Sunday, the suicide bombings hit Jaji, home to Nigeria’s Armed Forces Command and Staff College, one of the country’s most important military colleges. While authorities initially said the blast killed 11 people, an official at the base’s medical center said Monday at least 30 died from the blasts and another 45 others had been wounded in the attack. The official spoke on condition of anonymity as the military hospital bars its staff from speaking to journalists.

Brig. Gen. Bola Koleoso, a military spokesman, said he had no new information Monday about the bombings.

Despite sending soldiers into troubled northern cities, Nigeria’s military has been unable to stop the attacks and has alienated locals with heavy-handed tactics and retaliatory attacks that have seen dozens of civilians killed at a time. Meanwhile, soldiers and security forces routinely have been killed in guerrilla attacks by Boko Haram.

The suicide bombings and police station attack comes after Nigerian authorities offered a total of $1.8 million in rewards for information leading to the arrest of top Boko Haram members.

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Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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New Born Baby Kidnapped from Labour Room in Abia State

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Read Time:7 Minute, 48 Second
Gunmen invaded the labour room of a maternity home in Nkwoegwu, Ohuhu, in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State and took away a new born baby while nurses were battling to save the mother from bleeding to death.

The baby, a boy, was still dripping with blood when the evil men seized and folded him with the bed sheet in which he was lying.

The mother, Mrs. Eberechi Ihezukwu, says she still thinks that she is in one deep dream, which she will wake up from. “I only heard the cry of my baby and I asked the nurse its sex and she told me that it was a baby boy. I have had three girls for my husband and this is the first male child. My heart was joyful as I felt that I have got an identity in my husband’s house.

With the joy, I was happy that if the nurses stopped the bleeding, its arrival would be a consolation for my travails. “Now see what they have done to me. My breasts are heavy with milk; it is a burden I have refused to bear. They should please bring back my baby to suck my breasts. I refuse to believe that my baby has gone; the God who put it in my womb for nine months before its delivery will fish out the perpetrators and my baby will be brought back to me. Continue after the cut:

Peace will continue to elude those who have taken it until they bring it back to me,” Mrs. Ihezukwu prayed. Her husband, Clifford Ihezukwu, a radio/television repairer, said what was too much for him to understand was how the police, who he reported the incident to turned him into a suspect and locked him up in a cell for two days (Tuesday to Thursday) until he allegedly bailed himself with N15, 000.

“On Tuesday, November 13, 2012, at about 2pm, my wife who was already heavy with a baby told me she was going to hospital (Our Lady of Apostles, Nkwoegwu, Ohuhu, Umuahia North LGA of Abia State) where she normally puts to bed. Later, she phoned me, seeking for my consent as the nurses wanted to give her hot drip to help her deliver of the baby since during her three previous pregnancies, there was no time she was given such hot drip before she put to bed. Instantly, I gave my consent if that would be the solution to the problem.

I learnt that the drip was at about 6pm. By 7pm, I went there to see her since it is within a short distance from my home. When I got to the maternity, I saw my wife’s sister rejoicing; she told me that my wife had just put to bed. I thanked God and told her to take charge while I went back to check what I was cooking. I was there when she rushed back to the house and was shouting: “My stomach! My stomach!” I asked her what was amiss and she told me that gunmen invaded the maternity, kicked her in the stomach after overpowering the security man and collected everybody’s cell phones, including that of my wife who was still inside the labour room where the nurses were battling to stop the bleeding after the delivery.

They dashed into the labour room, grabbed the baby who was still dripping with blood and dashed off. My wife was not yet conscious of what was going on as she battled for survival after the nurses had administered her with some injection to stop the bleeding. So, I rushed to the maternity. When I got there, the whole place was locked; I went round knocking at the windows until someone opened. When they narrated how gunmen carried out their operation and took my baby away, I took my wife and went straight home.

"When I later came back to the maternity, soldiers had besieged the arena. After asking questions, the soldiers picked the five nurses and I told them that my wife was still bleeding and appealed to them to allow one nurse to attend to her and they obliged me. After some time, policemen came and asked us what happened and I told them what transpired. Then, they asked me to come to the station in the morning and report the matter officially.

They asked me and I directed them to the home of the owner of the maternity and they left. In the morning, I was attending to my wife and children when they came and asked me why I had not come to the station as they directed me. Then, I told them that I was still attending to my wife and children and would soon be with them. Shortly after, I went to Afugiri Police Station to make an entry. On getting there, the policemen who came to my house earlier were not present so I waited for about four hours before they came back as I was told that they went to Umuosu, the home of the owner of the maternity.

I told the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) what I knew about the matter. When he asked why I left the maternity I told him that I went to feed my children and look after my wife who was still down. After another two hours, I told them that I was going to eat and see how my wife and children were doing. As I was speaking with him, he ordered that I should be kept behind the counter. My brother who came with me had to go and buy malt and snacks for me to eat because I was already famished. “Then the owner of the maternity, Mrs. Dan Mbakwe and her husband came with my Sister- in-Law. About 4pm, I asked them what my offence was and why I should not be allowed to go home and see my family, but the policemen kept mute. After some time, they started intimidating and telling me that I was the number one suspect in the case and that I would soon be taken to see the Commissioner of Police and I said ok.
 
“At about 5 pm, they brought out a Hilux van, put me, my sister in-law, Mrs. Mbakwe and her husband and the securityman at the hospital in it and took us to the State CID headquarters. At the State CID, I told them my story and they told me that it was late for me to be released and that I would be locked up till the next day.

They asked me to pull off my dress and then hauled my sister and me in-law into cell. But they kept Mrs. Mbakwe, her husband and the securityman at the counter. Then they all left and handed over to another set of policemen on duty. “In the morning, just before people started coming to work, they put us (the trio) into cell for about an hour to look as if all of us had been inside the cell all night. I then asked the Investigating Police Officer (IPO) what my offence was and he told me that no one had come for me. He said that he had asked them to bring N20, 000 for my bail. ‘Are you asking that amount of money from some one who had been passing through such a trauma?’ I asked the man who came for me later – Chief Ukaobasi.

I told him to look into my trouser pocket at the counter, maintaining that I had N8, 000 inside it. He found the money intact, added N2, 000 to it and paid the police with a promise to bring a balance of N5, 000 if they released me. On Thursday, they released me to go home. I then borrowed N5, 000 from a neigbour and sent to them to bring the total sum to N15, 000. But by I pm on that Thursday, the owner of the hospital and the security man were released. That is what I’m passing through. “I wonder why I should be made to go through this after my baby had been kidnapped and my wife left at a point of death.

“The name of the lady who signed my bail bond is Chioma. I ran to the police to help me because I had nobody and the police threw me into cell and turned me into a suspect instead of helping me to look for my stolen child. I am calling on the relevant authorities to come to my rescue. I have no one to fight for me,” he lamented. When contacted on phone, the State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Ambrose Aisabor, who was shocked said he was not aware of the matter.

“Where did this happen; I’m not aware of this incident; I have to find out,” the CP replied. When Daily Sun visited the maternity along Nkwoegwu road in Ohuhu. It was under lock and key. Daily Sun also visited the home of the Mbakwes, owners of the maternity at Umuosu, Okauga and did not find any body at home for comments.

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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