Comfort Monday is seven months pregnant and she is an inmate at the Kirikiri Female Prison in Lagos State. Since January 2010, Ms Monday has been locked up for an offence she claims she did not commit, courtesy of the man she says is responsible for her pregnancy. She appears to be paying the price of coming from a poor background.
She recalls how, about 18 months ago, while living with her father and siblings in Port Harcourt, her father told her to accompany to Lagos, their landlord’s friend, one Wintua Nadu, who was in need of a female assistant.
In Lagos, Mr Nadu, whose residence doubles as his shop and is located on Owode Street in Abule Egba, a suburb of Lagos State, enrolled her in a secondary school nearby. But soon after she became his house-help, she said the man she regarded as an ‘uncle’ began sleeping with her, and subsequently stopped her education.
“I came from village and was doing house-girl for him. That is when he started sleeping with me. It has been long. At first I was going to school but after like a month, I stopped. I was in JSS 2 that time. If I am not doing housework, sometimes I will sell in the shop,” said Ms Monday.
The alleged sexual abuse did not stop and she later became pregnant. According to her, when she told him she had missed her period, Mr Nadu, who is about 50 years old, beat her thoroughly. In late January 2010, Ms Monday says, he travelled, after instructing her to sell some compressors worth about N95,000 in the shop, and give the money to his gateman; which she did but the said gateman allegedly disappeared with the money.
Journey to prison
When he returned and was told the gateman had made away with the money, he got police officers from the Oko Oba Police Station to arrest Ms Monday and a neighbour, identified as Kennedy, for theft. He further claimed that Ms Monday stole an additional N200,000 from his safe in the house and accused Kennedy of being responsible for Ms Monday’s pregnancy.
“If I stole that kind of money, why will I still remain in the house? He brought me from village. Where will I even go? Who do I know in Lagos? Nobody! One naira, I don’t have in my pocket. Kennedy is just a neighbour; he has nothing at all to do with this matter. I don’t know why he arrested him. Or is it because he has seen us talking before? I swear, he is innocent,” she said.
Both Ms Monday and Mr kennedy were arraigned at the Abule Egba Magistrate Court on January 26, 2010, where they both pleaded not guilty. But while Kennedy secured bail for himself, Ms Monday could not, and has been languishing in prison since then, even as her due date draws near. At present, she has no legal representation.
A question of age
A twist in Ms Monday’s situation is her age. She says she was 16 when Mr Nadu brought her to Lagos in 2009. If true, she would be 17 years old in 2010. By law, if less than 18, she is a minor and it would be illegal for her to be remanded in prison.
In a telephone conversation, Ms Monday’s father, Ezekiel Monday, who is a farmer in Elele Alimini, Rivers State, confirmed her age, while lamenting the plight of his daughter in the hands of the man he entrusted her to..
“It never reach two years my pikin follow my landlord friend. And that time na 16 years she be. Na because she no dey do anything for village, people talk make I let am follow am go Lagos, that she go school for there,” Mr Monday said.
“I no collect any money from the man. I just tell am make he take care of her. As I come hear say she steal money, I no believe because even for village here, nobody don ever report say she be thief. We know say the man na big man so we dey beg am please make him release my daughter.”
When NEXT contacted Mr Nadu, whose wife and children are said to live abroad, he requested a one-on-one interview. But when a telephone call was made to him one hour after he failed to show up at the agreed place, he threatened not to spare NEXT if this story is published.
“Have you verified your facts? Don’t go and publish anything that will cost your company a lot of money o! Otherwise, I will not spare anybody in this matter because this matter is a very bad matter,” Mr Nadu said.
On another occasion when NEXT called, he handed the phone to a man who did not disclose his full name but who identified himself as a lawyer. The said lawyer stated that he would not make any comments as “it will pre-empt the judgment of the court and influence the outcome of the case” being heard at the Kirikiri Magistrate Court, Apapa..
Ms Monday’s next court date is July 19, 2010 and, according to her, she is praying for a miracle, as she does not want to give birth to her child while in detention. She is desperate and alone. She came to Lagos dreaming of a better life. Now, all she wants is to return to her village, where she knows people and feels safe...
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