Godwin Tsa, Abuja
The family of a 13-year-old girl, Ochanya Ogbanje, who was allegedly raped to death in Benue State, has appealed to the new Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Adamu Mohammed, to arrest the fleeing suspect and prosecute him.
Ochanya died in October last year due to complications arising from the alleged sexual assault she suffered at the hands of her guardian, Mr. Andrew Ogbuja, a lecturer at the Benue State Polytechnic, Ugbokolo, and his son, Victor Ogbuja, a final-year student at the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, over many years.
Speaking at the second annual awards and lecture of the Daily Asset newspaper yesterday in Abuja, where the late Ochanya was conferred with the paper’s posthumous award for the Young Person of the Year 2018, the deceased’s brother, Mr. John Ameh, renewed calls for the swift prosecution of the suspects.
Ameh appealed to Mohammed to take immediate steps to arrest the second suspect in the matter, Victor Ogbuja, whom he said had been on the run since the news of Ochanya’s death broke.
He said Ochanya’s death had left the family heartbroken due to the sordid circumstances that led to her untimely departure, urging the new police boss to direct the Benue State police commissioner, Mr. Okon Ene, to declare the suspect wanted.
“It is needless to say that it has been a difficult time for us as a family since the tragic death of our beloved Ochanya in October last year. The circumstances surrounding her painful exit are already in the public domain, but for the sake of emphasis, Ochanya’s aggressors and killers, the paedophilic Andrew Ogbuja and his son, Victor, must be brought to justice. We appeal to the new IGP to declare Victor Ogbuja wanted for the rape and death of Ochanya.
“Our demand for justice is not borne out of vengeance, but the sheer desire to ensure that other girls within the community and Nigeria as a whole are safe from the pandemic of sexual violence.
“On behalf of the family, I would like to thank the management and staff of Daily Asset newspaper for this kind gesture. It is the first of its kind from a private organisation, in trying to raise awareness about the dangers of child sexual abuse, which has assumed epidemic proportions in the country,” he said.
The chairman on the occasion and former presidential aspirant, Prof. Iyorwuese Hagher, called on government at all levels to invest in education.
In the same vein, the guest lecturer, Prof. Yima Sent, noted that the bedrock for meaningful development in any society must be predicated on quality education.
Bayelsa State governor, Seriake Dickson, won the Governor of the Year Award, and was represented by the state’s commissioner for information, Mr. Iworiso Markson.
Other awardees were Speaker of the House of Representative, Yakubu Dogara, as well as Benue, Jigawa and Akwa Ibom governors.