Sex-for-admission allegation, police extrajudicial killing, other top stories from South-south last week

From a professor putting pressure on a female student to trade her virginity for admission to a man beheading his girlfriend, and a top PDP leader predicting the ‘death’ of the party in Edo State, the second week of February was filled with interesting events in Nigeria’s south-south region.

Here are the highlights of the top stories that made headlines in the region last week:

PDP defeated in its stronghold

The week began on Sunday with the release of the results of rerun elections conducted in some states in the region.

The exercise was peaceful in Delta State and Cross River where a high turnout of voters was reported.

But in Akwa Ibom State, the rerun elections were marred by violence and carting away of voting materials, INEC had said.

Amidst the irregularities and violence in Akwa Ibom, the PDP, for the second time in less than a year, after the 2023 general election, suffered an embarrassing defeat in some parts of the state – Akwa Ibom is considered a traditional stronghold of the PDP.

The PDP was defeated by the Young Progressives Party (YPP) which is relatively new in the state.

Although INEC cancelled elections in some polling units due to “violence”, the valid results collated were enough to give the PDP a second defeat in the National Assembly and State Constituency elections.

The candidate of the YPP, Emmanuel Ukpong-Udo, who is returning to the National Assembly for a second term, polled 24, 050 votes to defeat Glory Edet, the PDP candidate who scored 17, 282 votes in the Ikono/Ini Federal Constituency rerun election.

In the rerun election in the Ibiono Ibom State Constituency, the YPP candidate, Moses Essien, defeated the PDP candidate, Godwin Ekpo.

The two PDP candidates, Mrs Edet and Mr Ekpo had challenged the victory of the YPP candidates, Mr Ukpong-Udo and Mr Essien at the Court of Appeal, which ordered a rerun.

Man beheads girlfriend

There was apprehension in Bayelsa State communities on Tuesday over the fear of reprisal attack after a man from Kabeama, a coastal settlement in Sagbama Local Government Area of the state allegedly beheaded his girlfriend.

The suspect, identified simply as Tony, had been living with the slain woman, Ebibraaladei Maxwell, and had a child together.

The police spokesperson in Bayelsa, Musa Mohammed, said the suspect had been arrested.

Police arrest 22 suspects over killing of inspector

The police in Akwa Ibom State, on Tuesday, announced the arrest of 22 suspects over the killing of an inspector, Usang Egbe, in a machete attack in Uyo.

Odiko Macdon, the police spokesperson in the state, had also announced the arrest of a “serial murderer” – Emem Friday – who is accused of masterminding a deadly cult war in Oruk Anam Local Government Area of the state.

Still, on security matters, we also reported that two out of three persons abducted by gunmen at ME Lounge, a bar at Osongama Housing Estate in Uyo, on 27 January, were still in captivity, after two weeks.

The kidnap was confirmed by the State Commissioner for Internal Security, Koko Essien, a retired army general, who said that the gunmen had freed one of the victims.

The gunmen had stormed the bar in the evening of the said day when customers were watching the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations and ordered everybody to lie down, before abducting the three men.

Police killing of vigilante leaders, two others

Extra-judicial killings by police officers in the country continued within the week as the police in Delta State confirmed the alleged killing of leaders of a vigilante group in the state by police operatives.

Bright Edafe, the police spokesperson in the state, said the operatives also killed two others in the incident but did not say what led to the killing.

He said the operatives have been identified and detained, and that internal disciplinary actions have been initiated.

Student accuses law professor of wanting her to trade her virginity for admission

It was an emotional moment for TJK (not her real name) at a Federal High Court, Abuja, as she recounted her ordeal in the hands of Cyril Ndifon, the suspended dean of Law Faculty at the University of Calabar, whom she said wanted her to trade her virginity for admission in the faculty.

Mr Ndifon, a law professor, is being prosecuted by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission over allegations of sexual abuse against female students in the university.

PDP BOT predicts ‘death’ of party in Edo

It appears all is not well in the PDP in Edo State, ahead of the September governorship election in the state.

A member of the Board of Trustees (BOT) of the party, Charles Idahosa, said the party in the state would be as “good as dead and buried” if issues raised by the nine governorship aspirants of the party who recently protested the ad-hoc delegates election in the state were not resolved.

Mr Idahosa at a meeting in Abuja with Dan Orbih, the national vice-chairperson of the PDP, accused some national officers of the party from the APC-controlled northern states of fueling the crisis in the PDP in Edo.

He alleged that some PDP leaders were acting like mercenaries, bent on selling the party to the highest bidder.

Governor Godwin Obaseki’s ambition to foist a governorship candidate on the PDP is causing a crisis in the party.

NNPP governorship candidate’s complaint against APC

The week ended on Saturday with the 2023 governorship candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) in Akwa Ibom State, John Akpanudoedehe complaining that his former party, the APC has been unfair to him despite his almost two decades of sacrifice for the APC.

Mr Akpanudoedehe dismissed rumours that he had returned to the APC, saying some conditions must be met by the APC before he considers returning to the party.