The heart-searing case of 13-year old, Miss Elizabeth Ogbanje, allegedly sexually abused, for five years by her cousin’s husband and son, resulting in vesico-vaginal fistula, rightly agitates Nigerians. The teenager who died from complications left a recorded message accusing Adrew Ogbuja and his son Victor, of sexually abusing her over the years. In a way, the numbing tragedy that befell Elizabeth, is a metaphor for Nigeria.
Like Elizabeth, Nigeria has been serially raped and abused, but there is a dispute about whodunit. With the tape as evidence, many have called for punishment for Andrew and his son who is on the run. Outraged, many NGOs have demanded death penalty for rapists. Indeed, if that could starve a burgeoning epidemic, this writer though against death penalty, may be tempted to support the movement. Unfortunately, despite the increase in rape, there are few rapists serving jail terms.
There is hardly any week you don’t read of rape incidents in the newspapers. Of course, when a father impregnates a daughter, or a brother impregnates a sister, the dirty relationship must have started from a rape, before it appeared normal. So, while justice for victims must be pursued vigorously, social-psychologists should examine why the increase in rape in Nigeria, with a particular interest in incestuous rape.
The accusation against Andrew and his son is particularly intriguing. Why would a man and his son share the cold comfort of an eight year old girl regularly for five years? If they did it, then, both of them deserve their comeuppance. Of interest, at the side line of an event this writer attended over the weekend, somebody raised the startling possibility that Andrew’s name could have been mentioned, to strengthen the case against his son, who no doubt has questions to answer.
With the poor victim dead, unearthing whether Victor’s father was getting his just desert, for a heinous crime or merely a victim of blackmail, pails into insignificance, for majority of commentators. In fact, many including the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), and other NGOs are demanding for justice for the tortured soul of Elizabeth, which only mean, convicting Andrew and apprehending and convicting Victor.
Like Nigeria, Elizabeth deserves justice, but if the intrigues as related is true, the din of crucify him, crucify him, against Andrew, may have subdued the possibility that the real culprit is yet to be apprehended. While one can give Andrew the benefit of doubt, for the rape charge, if his son has been molesting Elizabeth for five years, then his wife and he failed her, by not noticing the incestuous aberration for that long.
Outraged like other Nigerians, and under pressure, the police has substituted the charge of rape with criminal conspiracy and culpable homicide. Even in this season of deserving outrage, I doubt if the charge of culpable homicide would succeed. Even more worrisome is whether under the penal code, whoever is responsible for the cruelty against Elizabeth would pay. My worry is predicated on the requirement of collaboration, to convict for rape, or defilement, which better describes what happened to Elizabeth.
For a comparison, by the provision of section 218 of the criminal code, applicable to many states in southern part of the country, “any person who has unlawful carnal knowledge of a girl under the age of 13 years is guilty of a felony, and is liable to imprisonment for life, with or without whipping.” It continued: “any person who attempts to have unlawful carnal knowledge of girl under the age of 13 years is guilty of a felony, and is liable to imprisonment for 14 years, with or without whipping.”
Very commensurate punishment, one might say, were the penal code applicable to Benue State to be as heavy as the criminal code cited above, to give the tormentor(s) of Elizabeth due punishment for his/their ill conduct against her. A life jail for the real culprit(s) may assuage her poor soul. But there is a proviso that makes rape or defilement a tough nut to crack, in many cases. The proviso to section 218, says: “a person cannot be convicted of either of the offences defined in this section upon the uncorroborated testimony of one witness.”
While rape, the punishment, and attempted rape in sections 357 – 359 of the criminal code have no similar express proviso; to convict for, the courts have upheld the requirement for collaboration, and I hope there are collaborators to the evil visited on Elizabeth for the past five years, as alleged. Perhaps with the international community getting interested in the case, the Benue State government or if they demure, NGOs could bear the cost to use DNA to nail whodunit, to save whatever is left of our country’s reputation.
In Iko v State, (2001) F.W.L.R part 68, the effort by the Supreme Court tried to navigate the legal requirement on corroboration, did not entirely dissipate the lingering confusion. There, the Supreme Court said: “the purpose of corroboration is not to give validity or credence to evidence which is deficient or suspect or incredible but only to confirm and support that which as evidence is sufficient and satisfactory and credible, and corroborative evidence will only fill its role if itself is completely credible evidence.” The court further said: “in all cases where the law provides that corroboration is necessary, a conviction of an accused can only be valid when there is such corroboration.”
I earnestly hope the case of Elizabeth would draw attention to states whose laws on rape and unlawful sexual advances are archaic. There is also the need to establish care centres and specialized agencies to deal with the scourge of rape and related violence against women. Of note, Lagos State has championed the protection of vulnerable women from violence; and I urge other states to copy it. Assuming Elizabeth had an agency that could come to her aid much earlier, perhaps she would have run there for help.
Also, the calamity that befell Elizabeth is a pointer to the need for sex education, as early as is reasonable. Considering that she is a student of Government College, if she knew that she was risking a dangerous health hazard like vesico-vaginal fistula, she would not have suffered for five years in silence, before exposing whoever was taking advantage of her young body. Also, parents and guardians must also be vigilant, and monitor their wards closely. Assuming Adrew Ogbuja is innocent as claimed, vigilance would have saved him the current nightmare he is facing, with his son on the run.
For Nigeria, the comparison with Elizabeth is not farfetched, considering that unless the serial abuse against her, is stopped, she may end up in the morgue like the poor little girl. I demand for justice, for Elizabeth, not forgetting our abused country.
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