How was I boarded out, and where is this mental illness coming from?”
By Deborah Hassan
365Daily – A female soldier, Private Ruth Ogunleye, who was dismissed after accusing a senior officer, Colonel I.B. Abdulkareem, of sexual harassment, has asked the Nigerian Army to publish the outcome of its investigation on the alleged sexual harassment.
Ogunleye, in January 2024, alleged that Colonel I.B. Abdulkareem, and other senior officers, Colonel G.S. Ogor, and Brigadier General I.B. Solebo had made her life unbearable.
She made the declaration via her TikTok page, @Ogunleyeruthsavage1.
Ogunleye specifically accused Abdulkareem of making repeated attempts to assault her, administering injections against her will, forcibly removing her from her residence, and confining her to a psychiatric hospital for several months after she rejected his sexual advances.
In a reaction, the Director of Army Public Relations, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu, in a press conference on Tuesday, September 24, said Ogunleye’s claims were false.
Nwachukwu said that after an exhaustive review of facts gathered from an investigation into the matter ordered by the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Taoreed Abiodun Lagbaja, testimonies, and evidence presented, it was found that Abdulkareem did not commit the offences alleged by Ogunleye.
He added that medical reports following an evaluation at the National Hospital in Abuja indicated that Ogunleye was suffering from a condition that rendered her medically vulnerable.
Following the disclosure, Ogunleye, via her TikTok account, has urged the Nigerian army to publish the outcome of the investigation.
“I want to say a big thank you to the Nigerian Army and its spokesperson, Maj. Gen. Onyema Nwachukwu. It is no longer news that I was discharged from the service on June 15, 2024. I humbly request that the Nigerian Army publish the outcome of the investigation that led to my discharge,” she stated.
The dismissed officer added, “On January 9, 2024, I came on social media to complain about how I was harassed by Colonel I.B. Abdulkareem, Colonel G.S. Ogor, and Brigadier General I.B. Solebo. I beg the Nigerian Army to post the outcome of the investigation on its social media platforms so that the whole world will know what truly transpired and what led to my discharge. I will be very grateful if my request is considered.”
She appealed to the Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy, to inform the public on what actually transpired during the investigation. According to her, the Minister convinced her to voluntarily resign but not on the terms that the army is not reporting.
Ogunleye said, ”You’re not just a mother, you’re a woman everybody respects so much. Please come out and say things as they are. Ma, you requested me to leave the job, and I submitted my handwritten voluntary resignation letter to you, which you gave to the Army, and requested that they release me to your office. The psychiatric doctors were there when you intervened.
“Come out and tell the truth, ma. Thereafter, the Chief of Army Staff called me on July 1, where he told me he converted my voluntary discharge to a medical discharge because you wanted me to benefit from pension and other entitlements. How was I boarded out, and where is this mental illness coming from?”