Nigerians were horrified by the news of the dehumanising treatment meted out to a national youth corps member in Calabar, Cross River State, Ezeiruaku Ifeyinwa Fidelis, by a female army officer of 13 Brigade Command Calabar, Lt. Chika Viola Anele.
In a now-viral video clip, the soldier ordered the youth corps member to kneel before her while she soaked Ezeiruaku, who was clad in her National Youth Service Corp, NYSC, uniform with liquid substance suspected to be mud water all over her body.
Many see Anele’s disgraceful action as not just an assault on Ezeiruka but also a slap on the face of Nigeria whose uniforms both wore during the unsavoury display of crude force or power drunkenness. Anele was fully garbed in her military uniform just as Ezeiruka was in her NYSC uniform.
Ezeiruaku, who was attached to the brigade command as her place of primary assignment, was debased for her effrontery to have engaged the soldier in an argument.
A yet-to-be-identified witness recorded the incident wherein the female soldier was also seen using the back of the bowl with which she was scooping the dirty water she poured on the corps member to hit her head.
Somehow, an activist, Agba Jalingo, got hold of the footage and posted it on social media thereby stirring anger across the land.in posting the footage, Agba had written: “This is what a commissioned female Army officer, Lt. Chika Viola Anele, did to a youth corps member, Ezeiruaku Ifeyinwa Fidelia, serving at the 13 Brigade headquarters in Calabar after having an argument.
“We understand that the leadership in 13 Brigade is working to kill the matter. Let us make (the) officer very popular for all the wrong reasons. Share the video until it gets to the Chief of Army Staff and that Chika (Anele) girl is brought to book.”
The post speedily triggered off an online campaign, dubbed: #Justiceforifenyinwa, #SayNoToMilitary Brutality, where Nigerians expressed their umbrage against Anele’s action.
Embarrassed by the incident, the Nigeria Army strongly condemned Anele’s “unprofessional” conduct and denied allegation of cover up.
According to the Director, Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu: “The Nigerian Army has taken cognizance of a video clip currently making the rounds on social media, where a female officer was seen dehumanising a member of the National Youth Service Corps in Calabar, Cross River State. This act is not only condemnable but unprofessional and against established precepts of discipline in the NA.
“The NA therefore, condemns in strong terms, this act of gross misconduct. Undoubtedly, the officer’s actions have caused the NA monumental embarrassment and it’s highly regrettable. This unfortunate act of indiscipline does not in any way represent the NA and will not be condoned in its entirety.
“For the records, the ugly incident happened in 13 Brigade, Calabar. The brigade commander immediately instituted an investigation and the officer involved has been identified and sanctioned in the interim and would be made to undergo regimental orders (trial) in line with the extant provisions of the Armed Forces Act.”
Nwachukwu apologised on behalf of the Army, to the victim, her family, friends, the NYSC and Nigerians over the incident.
Meanwhile Lt. Anele was arrested by the Military Police and is to face disciplinary action after trial for the embarrassing and unfortunate assault.
However, perhaps, to protect Ezeiruka from further trauma or harassment, the NYSC authorities allowed her to leave Calabar and relocate Lagos.
The affront seems to have changed the course of Ezeiruka’s destiny, as she has tilted towards activism. In an interview, Ezeiruka charged her colleagues to fight for their rights, adding that the humiliating treatment she suffered was embarrassing and traumatic
She told her colleagues to never allow themselves to be intimidated by uniform-wearing officers but to fight for their rights.
“My advice to them (colleagues) is that they should be strong; there is pressure on them because one of their colleagues was dealt with. My advice to them is to be strong and fight for their rights,” Ezeiruka said.
Speaking further, she recalled: “Thanks be to God for coming out of Calabar. It has not been easy, all the calls; people from all over Nigeria have been calling me to say they have seen my picture, the way she maltreated me but I thank God that I am out and I am safe.”
She added that the military authorities neither threatened nor barred her from speaking to the media after the sordid footage went viral, saying they were rather saddened by the action of Anele.
“Ever since the incident, I have not been myself because of the trauma; each time I remember what the baby did, I feel embarrassed,” she posited, insisting that the law should take its course in dealing with Anele.
Many Igbo have slammed Anele for this crude action and treating a fellow Igbo so shabbily. They postulated that she would never treat a Fulani like that and still be alive or in service. They wondered if that is the way they would go to Biafra to exhibit crude power over the helpless among them.
The one-year mandatory National Youth Service is one most Nigerian graduates look forward to with mixed feelings and trepidation. It is supposedly meant to foster unity and afford the participants the opportunity to explore other parts of the country.
A cross-section of Nigerians feels that Nigerians in the military or paramilitary service suffer from what they described as a uniform mentality. Give even the mail guard in your house a uniform to wear, another spirit takes him over and he becomes omnipotent.
Such is the case with Anele. Therefore, they urge the government to train their security personnel well lest another #endsars protest rocks the country on a much wider intensity.
However, recent experiences have brought the relevance of the scheme to question. In fact, the shine has gone out of the scheme and not a few want it scrapped. People argue that it contributes to unemployment since employers are sure to get a cheap or free workforce for a year. Sometimes, too, the corps members could be seen roaming the streets in search of places to be posted for primary assignment. Even when the place is eventually secured, they are subjected to menial and demeaning assignments.
Like the story under reference, Ezeiruka would never have been so treated if the scheme still lives up to what it was set up to do.
However, many other Nigerians still cherish the scheme and would not contemplate scrapping it. One of such men is Dr. Joe Chukwu, a lecturer in the Mass Communication Department of Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu Alike (AE-FUNAI), Ebonyi State, who preserved his NYSC t-shirt for 37-years and recently bequeathed it to his daughter.
Father bequeaths 37-year old NYSC ceremonial to daughter
A lecturer in the Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu Alike (AE-FUNAI), Ebonyi State, Dr. Joseph Chukwu, has donated his 37-year-old National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, and T-Shirt to his daughter, Miss Flora Chinaza Chukwu, who was proceeding on the mandatory national service for young graduates.
Chukwu, a lecturer in the Department of Mass Communication and the pioneer Public Relations Officer of the institution, said he reserved the uniform after his youth service in Otu, Iseyin Local Government Area of old Oyo State for any of his future children.
According to him, preservation was a way of preserving important historical landmarks, which should not be destroyed. He urged individuals and the government to reserve important and ancient landmarks as artifacts for future generations.
The university noted that he deserved a place in both the Guinness Book of Records and the NYSC Hall of Fame.
In her reaction, Flora expressed joy at the gift and described her father as the best in the world.
“I have known my father as an unparalleled archivist. Most of his secondary school books are well preserved in his big library in our house,” she recalled.
Flora is a graduate of Criminology and Security Studies from AE-FUNAI.
