A former female soldier, Private Ruth Ogunleye, has asked the Nigerian Army to publish the outcome of its investigation on alleged sexual harassment.
Ruth Ogunleye had accused a senior officer, Colonel I.B. Abdulkareem, of sexual harassment.
In January 2024, Ruth Ogunleye via her TikTok page, @Ogunleyeruthsavage1, Ogunleye alleged that Colonel I.B. Abdulkareem, Colonel G.S. Ogor, and Brigadier General I.B. Solebo had made her life unbearable.
She specifically accused Abdulkareem of making repeated attempts to assault her, administering injections against her will, forcibly removing her from her residence, and confining her to a psychiatric hospital for several months after she rejected his sexual advances.
Reacting to her claims on Tuesday, the Director of Army Public Relations, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu, in a press conference, noted that the outcome of the investigation has invalidated Ruth Ogunleye's claims.
Nwachukwu said that after an exhaustive review of the facts, testimonies, and evidence presented, it was determined that Abdulkareem did not commit the offences alleged by Ogunleye, noting that medical reports following an evaluation at the National Hospital in Abuja indicated that Ogunleye was suffering from a condition that rendered her medically vulnerable.
But reacting to the above claims Ogunleye via her TikTok account urged the Nigerian army to publish the outcome of the investigation.
In her words: "I want to say a big thank you to the Nigerian Army and its spokesperson, Maj. Gen. Onyema Nwachukwu. It is no longer news that I was discharged from the service on June 15, 2024. I humbly request that the Nigerian Army publish the outcome of the investigation that led to my discharge.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
"On January 9, 2024, I came on social media to complain about how I was harassed by Colonel I.B. Abdulkareem, Colonel G.S. Ogor, and Brigadier General I.B. Solebo. I beg the Nigerian Army to post the outcome of the investigation on its social media platforms so that the whole world will know what truly transpired and what led to my discharge. I will be very grateful if my request is considered.
Urges Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy to intervene
"I'm calling out the Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy. You're not just a mother, you're a woman everybody respects so much. Please come out and say things as they are. Ma, you requested me to leave the job, and I submitted my handwritten voluntary resignation letter to you, which you gave to the Army, and requested that they release me to your office. The psychiatric doctors were there when you intervened.
"Come out and tell the truth, ma. Thereafter, the Chief of Army Staff called me on July 1, where he told me he converted my voluntary discharge to a medical discharge because you wanted me to benefit from pension and other entitlements. How was I boarded out, and where is this mental illness coming from?"
