Embattled human rights activist, Prof. Zainab Duke Abiola, has denied the allegation of assaulting her female police orderly, Inspector Teju Moses.
The Herald earlier reported that the police threatened to drag Abiola to court for assaulting the police orderly attached to her.
A viral video that circulated on Wednesday shows Inspector Teju Moses sitting on the floor with her face and uniform bloodied and asking to be taken to the hospital for medical care.
Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi said in a Thursday statement that Abiola, and her domestic staff comprising a housemaid, one Rebecca Enechido, and a male suspect currently at large, perpetrated the “grievous assault”.
The police said Abiola beat up the police orderly for refusing to “breach professional ethics by carrying out menial and domestic chores at her house”.
However, Vanguard quoted Abiola as denying the allegation in a statement issued on her behalf by the Afro-European Lawyers League.
“Our attention has been drawn to a fallacious malicious defamatory publication against our respected Alumnus of the National Institute of Policy and Security Studies, NIPPS, Professor Zainab Duke Mni alleging assault on one of Her police Orderlies. We categorically state that this is not true and Nothing could be further from the truth. For the records our respected revered Professor Zainab has Never assaulted anybody anywhere at any time. It is not in her character.
“That on the 20th of April 2022 the IGP approved the revalidation and deployment of police orderlies to our leader based on the fact that she is the Chief Legal Consultant to the Nigerian Police and has her office at the Force Headquarters, Abuja.
“That the police consequently assigned a female police officer who was among the perpetrators of Violence against innocent Nigerian Citizens during the ENDSARS imbroglio.
“That consequent upon discovery of her Orderly’s involvement in police brutality against Nigerians that Professor Zainab rejected the posting of a brutal officer and returned the said Orderly back to Force Headquarters to her bosses and told her Bye bye on the 19th of September.
“That to our surprise around 10pm the former Orderly returned with a Vengeance banging on our gates with some dangerous weapons including a gun threatening to kill everybody in the compound and that the police Orderly beat up family members of the Professor’s household.
“That as can be seen in the video a crowd soon gathered and there was street brawling crowd fighting and loss of properties.
“That it is very strange that the IGP will forcefully, brutally and illegally violate the fundamental Rights and liberties of a distinguished law- abiding citizen and proceed to forcefully take her pictures and maliciously publish same in the print and electronic media in this nascent democratic dispensation.”
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