The office of the first lady of Edo state Mrs. Lara Fortes-Oshiomhole was on Monday thrown into what appears to be a scandal following the unlawful detention of one Mrs. Jennifer Ero, a friend to the Governor’s wife and coordinator of Child Protection Network (CPN), on the orders of Lara at the state CID.
Mrs. Oshiomhole petitioned the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Chris Ezike to arrest and detain Mrs. Ero over alleged poor handling of the training of the Internally Displayed Persons, (IDPs). Mrs. Ero was allegedly detained at the Police State Headquarters from Monday to Tuesday.
The Child Protection Network (CPN) which she coordinates is a network of several other organisations that canvasses for better life, education and good health for underprivileged children. The network also advocates against child abuse, child labour, child hawking, trafficking and other social vices against children across the country.
The report regarding the illegal detention has it that Jennifer Ero was said to be given a contract by Mrs. Oshiomhole to provide computer training and other skills acquisition techniques for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Uhogua Ovia North East LGA of the State.
The programme initiated recently by the Cape Verdian wife of governor Oshiomhole on the auspices of her pet project ”We Care Trust” in collaboration with Ella P Collections and the Edo State Government ought to have benefited 160 young and adult IDPs in Uhogua.
Our source who preferred to remain anonymous told our correspondent that some persons in the office of the first lady demanded a bribe of N500,000 of the contract sum from Jennifer Ero, which she bluntly rebuffed because the contract sum was in the neighbourhood of N3 million plus.
The persons later conspired against her by laying false allegations of using obsolete materials (desktop computers instead of Laptops computers), incompetence and corruption against her to Mrs. Oshiomhole who without verifying the allegations ordered her detention.
Records have shown that Mrs. Ero along with her colleagues having been handling similar projects for the European Union, EU, United Nations Development Programme, UNDP, United Nations, Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, UNESCO nationwide without defaults or allegations of subverting the process.
Another source speaking anonymously confirmed to our reporter that ”Jennifer Ero and Mrs. Oshiomhole actually had a minor misunderstanding which has been resolved”, but declined further details stating that ” both parties have reconciled”.
Furthermore, when a call was put to Jennifer Ero, she said, ”she didn’t want to speak on the matter and agreed to contact us later, which she never did. Her mobile line was left unanswered when she was contacted later.
Probing further, a call was put to the Chief Security Officer, CSO to Governor Adams Oshiomhole, Mr. Aruna Yusuf, regarding the illegal detention which he allegedly ordered. Mr. Aruna dispelled being aware of such and directed our reporter ”to call the commissioner of police to confirm”. When contacted with his phone number, the Commissioner of police, Mr. Chris Ezike to confirm the report of illegal detention of Mrs. Ero, the commissioner declined comment and told us ”to see him at the office please”.
Some two years ago in a similar but horrifying streak, Governor Adams Oshiomhole brazenly threw caution and decency overboard and told Mrs. Joyce Ifijeh, a widow who was allegedly trading along a major road in Benin City to “Go And Die”.
The governor’s foreign wife has been weighing and flaunting her imperial powers of late – as the first lady to a man who covets the rawness of powers – showing some kindness as well, to the chagrin of political observers.
It has been confirmed by our reporter that the first lady yesterday forcibly made Mrs. Ero to write a cheque to return the unspent balance of the money on the training exercise which according to Lara, was supposed to have lasted for a month but was halted after two weeks because of irreconcilable differences. Mrs. Ero allegedly signed undertaken not to speak to the press over the matter.
The last is yet to be heard about this report as we await the confirmation of the commissioner of police.
-urhokpotareporters
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