Headline

Pathetic Story Of How Men Spent 15 Years In jail For No Cause

Published

4 years ago

January 15, 2022

Sometime in 2007, some 19 Igbo youths were randomly picked up and locked away in different detention facilities by security operatives over allegations of terrorism and treason.

They were accused of either belonging to the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) or sponsoring its activities in the South East.

They were arrested while going about their normal businesses. However, on November 24, 2021, after 15 years of incarceration, they regained their freedom having been discharged and acquitted by a Federal High Court sitting in Awka, Anambra State. In truth, no tangible evidence was produced by government to justify their arrest and detention in the first instance.

The trial judge, Justice Nicholas Oweibo said the prosecutors failed to establish proof for treason and terrorism charges levelled against the 19 accused persons.

Saturday Sun encountered some of them, and they recounted their heart-rending experiences in detention.

They lamented that their future had been ruined by the Federal Government of Nigeria over trumped up charges.

I lost my business and love of my life
–Chikwem

Ikechukwu Chikwem was 35 years old when he was arrested in his spare parts shop located in Nkwo Nnewi. Now 50 and left to start life afresh, Chikwem who hails from Obazu Mbieri in Mbaitolu Local Government Area of Imo State, recalled with trepidation how his life was turned on its head.

In the morning of April 11, 2007, Chikwem was in one of his shops, attending to customers when two policemen came and told him he was needed at their station. Chikwem boldly followed the officers since he felt he had no unfinished business transaction with anyone neither was he owing any of his business partners. He told his neighbours to watch over his shop, adding that he would be back in an hour.

“Throughout that morning, they kept me behind the counter. I stayed there till 6pm. They brought one bus and asked me to enter. I asked them what was the problem and they said I would know when I got to Awka. From there, they took me to the State CID; I stayed there till the next morning when they took me to Awkuzu SARS,” he narrated.

It was at the SARS office in Awkuzu that an officer asked him, ‘where is the White man?’ Surprised by the question, Chikwem asked to know which White man the officer was referring to. Rather than a reply, he said he received hot slaps on his face, followed by severe torture that ended up paralyzing his hands for several months.

“So when they asked further questions I kept quiet because I didn’t know which answer would annoy them. All they needed was for me to always reply in the positive. One man there ordered them to take me to a hall where they hang people. They said I would say the truth there.

“They brought out sliced bicycle tube used for tying broom and tied my hands from my fingers to my shoulders. The pain was so excruciating. I was crying and shouting. I now asked him to tell me anything he wanted me to say and I would say them.

“The pain was just too much for me. At that point, his phone rang. He picked his phone and answered the call for over 40 minutes. Before he could come back, my hands had been paralyzed. I was not feeling the pains anymore. He came back with a sheet of paper where he had written a lot of things and then asked me to sign.

“One of his colleagues asked him how possible it was for me to sign seeing that my hands had been paralyzed and I would not be able to use it even after six months. Then he took me back to the cell. I could not use my hands anymore. In the cell, other inmates were the ones that would bathe and feed me. They now transferred us to Umuahia from where we were moved to Abuja.”

Chikwem and other detainees were returned to Awka to face trial in court having been charged with terrorism and treason.

“They said that I am a MASSOB member, that my in-law is a MASSOB sponsor and he is passing the information and money through me. They said that my in-law is the one paying all MASSOB members. At the end of the day, they investigated and found nothing on me.

“I was granted bail in Abuja but because this thing is political, that bail was denied. I am a businessman and my boss was Ogbuawa (wealthy Nnewi businessman). I discovered that people who wanted to bring him down were behind the plot.

“The police did all the investigation but none of the allegations was true. They gave me that bail on Friday, I was contacting my people to come and fulfil the bail conditions on Monday. On Saturday, it was reported that the owner of my phone number is a terrorist. That he is the one burning all the police stations in Nnewi. That was how the bail was revoked and the investigation started again. This whole thing lasted for 15 years.”

Aside losing his business which was worth N16.7 million in 2007, Chikwem also lost the love of his life to another man. He had concluded the marital rites of introduction before the incident.

“I was about getting married and had already gone for the introduction before this thing happened. The lady didn’t abandon me; she stood by me and actually came to the police station to see me when I was arrested. But after about seven months, I told her to relax, that I was coming back.

“However, after two years in detention, I told her to go back to her parents. I told her that if I came back and found her unmarried, I’ll marry her but if she saw another man, she should go ahead and marry the person. We both started crying when I said this. My detention now took 15 years. By the grace of God, she is married now with kids. I have not seen her but we spoke over the phone.”

But for Chikwem, all hope is not lost. He recalled that many people came into the prison and died there but since he was still strong without any deformity, he still believes that he will achieve all his dreams.

He said: “What God deposited in me is still there. I can make it. I have forgotten the 15 years. I am now facing the future. Now, I am pleading, if I can be given another opportunity by our people, I will be grateful. I need financial assistance.

“I had planned to save up to N22 million. I’ll keep N2 million here and take N20 million to China and get my goods. That was before this incident. I actually had N16.7 million when this thing happened. I was almost getting to my target before these people came and damaged everything.”

Siblings dropped out of school, family house demolished

For Ndubuisi Okam, a native of Edda, Afikpo South in Ebonyi State, he was arrested on his way to Aba to purchase stock jeans which he sold in Abakaliki.

After spending 15 years in detention, he returned to his village only to realise that his father’s house had been pulled down. His family now lives in a one-room shanty. His three younger brothers, whose education he was financing, had dropped out of school. He also lost two of his uncles while in detention.

“I am happy to be alive and out of prison but I’m not happy with the situation I found myself. I was charged with treason and felony and plan to overthrow the government. I didn’t do anything. I thank God that after all the years, the judge of the Federal High Court Awka discovered that I did nothing.”

Okam, now 35 had planned to get married to a certain beautiful young girl called Nnenna before the unfortunate incident.

“She was the girl of my dream, but another person has now married her,” he said.

But that is not Okam’s problem. All he needs now is a fresh start. He wants to be empowered financially, so that he could assist his family

“I was 20 years then but I am 35 now. I want to have a good future but I need money. I have plans but none of them will make sense if I don’t have money.”

They kept changing judges –Ezekwem

Another victim, Chidiebere Ezekwem who hails from Ogwa community in Mbaitolu Local Government Area of Imo State was a shoe dealer in Onitsha. He was on his way to Aba to buy shoes when security operatives intercepted him along the way and brought him to Awka to face trial.

He bemoaned incessant adjournments and frequent change of trial judges who handled the case.

“When a judge starts the case, before getting to the end, he will be transferred and another judge will take over. This thing continued for several times until a particular judge, Justice Oweibo, came. Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, Senator Chris Anyanwu and members of MASSOB also got involved in the case before I was discharged.”

Now 40, Ezekwem said he was billed to get married to a girl he was engaged to before the incident. “The lady later got married to another man, so, I’m not married.

“After I was discharged on November 24, 202I, came back to my home in Ogwa community, Mbaitolu Local Government of Imo State because I have no other place to go.”

Just like his colleagues, Ezekwem now needs help from government and other public-spirited individuals to go back to his former business.

He said: “I want to continue with my normal life. I thank God for my strength, I lost everything but I did not lose my life. I also thank God for the MASSOB members who came up in their multitude for my rescue.

“So many things happened in the prison; idleness, no facilities, no sunlight, staying in the prison for 15years and seven months affected me, but I thank God for everything.”

They paid biggest price
– MASSOB leader

Reacting to the development, leader of MASSOB, Uchenna Madu in an interview hailed the 19 youths for paying a price bigger than what most agitators had paid in the past.

He said that while others including Chief Ralph Uwazuruike, Nnamdi Kanu and himself had spent some years in jail, these Igbo youths spent 15 of their most productive years in detention.

“As a matter of fact, since 1999 when this struggle started, this people are the highest and the greatest people that have paid the price, apart from those that laid down their lives.

“The highest I spent in the prison was three years, six months and two weeks but we are talking about 15 years here. Ralph Uwazuruike spent two years, Nnamdi Kanu has gone about two times or so but two years is the highest he has spent in the prison at a stretch. But these ones here have spent 15 years of their youth in prison.

“The Federal Government detained these men who had future plans and ambitions for their family and community. They have frustrated them and at the end of the day they are discharged and asked to go just like that. That is injustice.

“We know other steps that we are going to take to redress this and bring justice to our brothers. In their villages, so many people had seen them as criminals but today they are saints. They are freedom fighters.

“They suffered for the sake of Biafra. I use this medium once again to thank Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe. We met him, we appealed to him with Senator Chris Anyanwu, Senator Ben-Collins Ndu and a few others. We begged them and they listened to us, they moved. Abaribe is a true Igbo leader, even though he believes in the continuation of Nigeria. Abaribe believes in one Nigeria, he may not share the same idea of Biafra with us but at the same time the pains of his people touch him so much.”

One striking thing that Saturday Sun gathered in our investigations was that all these people never knew one another before their arrest. They were doing their businesses in different locations across the South East before they were arrested and branded Biafra agitators.

One of them said he did not belong to any Biafra group. But he stated that since he was incarcerated for years for what he knew nothing about, he was now ready to die for the Biafra struggle.

(SUN)

Headline

Trump Orders Tougher Visa Screening Regime

Published

3 days ago

November 10, 2025

Editor

The Donald Trump administration has reinstated a sweeping global visa policy that can make it harder for many foreign nationals—including Nigerians—to obtain U.S. visas, as Washington revives its controversial “public charge” rule targeting those deemed likely to depend on public benefits.

A newly issued State Department cable, obtained by Fox News Digital, directed American embassies and consulates worldwide to enforce the policy immediately. The directive, which officials say restores a Trump-era standard relaxed under President Joe Biden, instructs U.S. consular officers to deny visas to anyone considered likely to rely on government assistance in the United States of America.

Under the rule, visa applicants will be assessed on a wide range of personal factors—including their health, age, English proficiency, financial stability, and potential need for long-term medical care.

Consular officers are urged to take a holistic approach, considering everything from the applicant’s visa petition and financial affidavit to their medical report and any other information uncovered during background checks.

“You must examine all aspects of the case,” the guidance reads, “including the petition, visa application, medical report, affidavit of support, and any information uncovered in the course of screening and vetting.”

Older applicants, particularly those nearing retirement age, are expected to face extra scrutiny. The cable notes that “long-term institutionalisation (e.g., at a nursing facility) can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars per year and should be considered,” suggesting that age and health will play major roles in visa decisions.

The revived rule follows an executive order signed by President Donald Trump titled “Ending Taxpayer Subsidisation of Open Borders”. The order, according to the State Department memo, aims to ensure “that no taxpayer-funded benefits go to unqualified aliens.”

The cable further stresses that the public charge determination rests solely on the judgment of each consular officer, who must conduct a “comprehensive and thorough vetting” before issuing any visa. “There is no ‘bright line’ test,” the cable adds. “You must consider all aspects of the case and determine whether the applicant’s circumstances… suggest that he is more likely than not to become a public charge at any time.”

A State Department official told Fox News Digital, “For years, the American taxpayer was held hostage by the Biden administration’s disastrous open borders agenda… The Trump administration has brought an end to the era of mass immigration.”

The U.S. State Department controls visa issuance at embassies abroad, while the Department of Homeland Security manages who is ultimately admitted into the country or allowed to adjust status once inside the U.S. Though both agencies operate under the same immigration laws, the new guidance grants wide latitude to consular officers overseas to reject applicants on “public charge” grounds.

Before now, the Biden administration’s 2022 version of the rule had limited the benefits considered under the policy — counting only direct cash assistance and long-term institutional care, while excluding popular social support programmes such as food stamps (SNAP), Medicaid, housing vouchers, and the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) programme.

The Trump administration had expanded that definition in 2019 to include a broader range of public benefits, though several U.S. courts later blocked parts of the policy before it was scrapped by President Biden in 2021.

This week’s cable now marks a full return to that broader interpretation, instructing American consular officials to “conduct a comprehensive and thorough vetting” and to verify all supporting financial documents presented by applicants.

For many Nigerians seeking U.S. visas — from students and workers to elderly immigrants joining family abroad — the revived rule could mean more rejections and lengthier processing times.

Headline

Mexican President Pledges Tougher Sexual‑harassment Laws After Being Groped

Published

6 days ago

November 6, 2025

Editor

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Thursday unveiled proposals to boost reporting and prosecution of sexual abuse after she herself was groped in the street in an attack that caused outrage.

Mexico’s first woman president, 63, was assaulted on Tuesday by a drunken man while walking through the streets of the capital.

The assault made global headlines and focused attention on the dangers and harassment suffered by many women in the Latin American country.

Sheinbaum has pressed charges against her attacker for sexual harassment, a charge that in Mexico City covers lewd behaviour and groping.

She has also ordered a review of the widely diverging laws on sexual harassment and abuse across Mexico’s 32 states.

Sexual harassment in public spaces is so prevalent in Mexico that in the last decade, the authorities have created women-only spaces on the metro.

Other cities with similar arrangements include Mumbai and Rio.

“May what happened serve so that women do not feel alone in situations of harassment or abuse… and for this to happen, there must be institutions and a government that supports them,” Sheinbaum told her regular morning press conference.

The UN says around 70 per cent of Mexican girls and women aged 15 and over will experience at least one incident of sexual harassment in their lives.

Sheinbaum said that 45 per cent had experienced sexual “abuse.”

The man who assaulted her put one arm around her shoulder while she was greeting supporters, and with his other hand touched her hip and chest while attempting to kiss her neck.

A member of Sheinbaum’s security detail pulled him away.

Citlalli Hernandez, Secretary for Women, said more than 25,000 complaints of sexual harassment have been filed so far this year.

Headline

US Lawmakers Urge Sanctions On Miyetti Allah, Others Over Alleged Religious Violations

Published

6 days ago

November 6, 2025

Editor

The United States House of Representatives has urged the Departments of State and Treasury to impose targeted sanctions on individuals and organisations, including Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria and Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, over alleged violations of religious freedom in Nigeria.

This was contained in a resolution introduced before the House on Tuesday and cited by The PUNCH from the US Congress website on Wednesday.

Recall that Trump, in a post on Truth over the weekend, declared Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern” and threatened to take military action if the country did not stem the alleged killings of Christians.

Filed as H. Res. 860 in the 119th Congress, the resolution, submitted by Rep. Christopher Smith with Rep. Paul Huizenga as a co-sponsor, commends President Donald Trump for redesignating Nigeria as a CPC.

The sponsors decried the alleged worsening persecution of Christians and other religious minorities.

They cited a catalogue of findings and reports that informed the measure, including media accounts and NGO data alleging large-scale attacks on civilians, destruction of places of worship, and a pattern of impunity.

The resolution reads in parts, “For over a decade, Islamic terror organisations have carried out mass murder, rape, kidnappings, and other atrocities targeting mostly Nigerian Christians and non-Fulani moderate Muslim populations, resulting in mass displacement and destruction of places of worship

“Prominent Christian and Muslim leaders have been kidnapped or assassinated, including priests, pastors, and imams who advocate for religious tolerance;

“Religious leaders, such as Father Remigius Iyhula and Bishop Wilfred Anagbe, who testified on March 12, 2025, at a hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee about the persecution and targeted killings of Christians in the Diocese of Makurdi, have faced intimidation, threats, and harassment from both extremist groups and government authorities.”

Supporters of the measure argued that the CPC redesignation would strengthen diplomatic leverage to press Nigeria for accountability and protection of religious minorities.

“The designation of Nigeria as a CPC will enhance diplomatic efforts to encourage the Nigerian government to take necessary actions to protect religious minorities and uphold fundamental human rights,” they said.

They therefore moved that “President Donald Trump acted appropriately and decisively to redesignate Nigeria as a CPC and hold the Nigerian government accountable for its complicity in religious persecution by radical Islamists, such as Boko Haram and Fulani terrorists.”

They further recommended conditioning US foreign assistance on demonstrable steps by Nigeria to prevent persecution, prosecute alleged perpetrators, and care for displaced populations.

“The State Department should provide immediate humanitarian assistance directly to faith-based groups to support internally displaced people in Nigeria’s middle belt states.

“The United States, through the Department of State and Department of Treasury, should impose targeted sanctions, including visa bans and asset freezes under the Global Magnitsky framework and other restrictive measures, on individuals and entities responsible for severe violations of religious freedom in Nigeria, including sanctions against Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) and Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, and should place Fulani-Ethnic Militias operating in Benue and Plateau States on the Entities of Particular Concern List under the International Religious Freedom Act,” the resolution read.

The resolution also asked the US to justify the purposes and amounts of recent security and development assistance to Nigeria and to tie future support to improved human-rights outcomes.

The resolution was referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Judiciary Committee for further consideration.

If it advances out of committee, the resolution would mark a clear congressional signal backing Trump’s CPC decision and could open the door to further legislative or executive actions.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government had said the United States’ designation of Nigeria as a “country of particular concern” over alleged violations of religious freedom is based on a wrong perception of the country’s security challenges.

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, stated this on Wednesday in Abuja while addressing journalists.

Idris said the US position stemmed from “misrepresentation and misinformation” about Nigeria’s internal security situation.

According to him, terrorism and violent crimes in Nigeria do not target any particular religious group.

“Nigeria faces long-standing security challenges that have impacted Christians and Muslims alike.

“Any narrative suggesting that the Nigerian state is failing to take action against religious attacks is based on misinformation or faulty data,” Idris said.