Following 3 Battalion leadership failure to hand over its personnel, Aliyu Uwarh, who allegedly raped a nine-year-old girl (name withheld) to police for prosecution, an Effurun-based rights lawyer, Emmanuel Ekpuda, has petitioned the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Maj.-Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, for action.

A frustrated Ekpuda told Vanguard that the petition captured how the authorities at 3 Battalion had frustrated all moves to get justice for the rape victim.

Ekpuda is pleading with the Chief of Army Staff to use his office to curb every act of illegality that had necessitated his petition to his office.

The lawyer in the petition, also copied the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC and National Public Complaint Commission, read: “The oral briefing of our client reveals, that our clients’ daughter, who is nine years old, was raped by one Aliyu Uwarh, a soldier with the 3 Battalion of the Nigerian Army, Effurun. Sometime in May 2023.

“Our clients were doing their farm job, at the farm and the victim herein always fetched water for her parents, and in the course of doing their job, the said Aliyu Uwarh (the soldier) captured her, after she fetched water and started molesting her and further beat her up, not to tell anyone not even her parents and sometimes, used handkerchief to tie her mouth and abused her.

“Consequently, our clients then noticed that something was wrong with their daughter. The mother had to examine her, only to discover that someone has been molesting her daughter and after discussing with her, she opened up that a soldier man named Aliyu Uwarh have been raping her.

“The father of the victim was later locked up in Army custody for several days. On hearing all this, Mrs. Aliubaba, who was seven months pregnant, lost her pregnancy due to the trauma. “Commanding Officer of the 3 Battalion of the Nigeria Army, then gave the victim’s mother the sum of N50,000 to forget about the matter.

“After reporting the act/action of the said soldier, the soldier took our clients’ daughter for a medical checkup and it was confirmed that she has been molested/abused.

“All efforts to reach the Commanding Officer of the 3 Battalion, Major H. Liman proved abortive, the barracks refused and reject to collect solicitors’ letters to this effect.”

Ekpuda said efforts to get court bailiff to serve court processes were rebuffed by the authorities and they had also prevented Police from interrogating the suspect. (Vanguard)

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