TheCable

BY ISRAEL OJOKO

The news of the murder of Super TV CEO, Usifo Ataga, allegedly by his mistress, Chidinma Ojukwu, hit many in more ways than one. Some, mostly married women, see it as a lesson to cheating husbands, while most male counterparts see it as a dastardly act carried out by the most unsuspecting person.

Some individuals, in their wisdom, try to figure out the reason behind the action and the scenario that led to the 50-year-old’s death, while others just see it as fate.

But there is only one person who could possibly do justice in unraveling the real cause of Usifo’s demise and that person is Chidinma, the only person believed to be in the rented service apartment where her lover was gruesomely stabbed to death.

This same Chidinma is now becoming a TV star, aided by the media and the Nigerian Police, even while in detention. We are talking about a murder suspect here. Not theft, not battery. Murder, as in snuffing life out of another human being.

When Chidinma was arrested and paraded in front of multiple media houses by the Lagos state police command in Ikeja, she gave a storyline, a confession of some sort, about how it went down inside the AirBnB apartment in Lekki on that fateful day.

The story is all over the internet for anyone to verify. She said, with her own mouth, that she and the deceased were high on hard drugs and alcohol, then an argument ensued, then Usifo wanted another round of sex after an earlier round. She refused, he became violent and started chasing her about, she ran to the kitchen cabinet, Usifo was approaching, she reached for the knife, and boom, one-two times in the neck of her man.

Continuing her narration, Chidinma said Usifo, who has not passed on yet, tried to hold her, she moved away from the cabinet back to the room, Usifo, now bleeding, still trailed her, but she stabbed him again in the neck. Usifo who is now weak, fell on the bed before he finally gave up the ghost. This was her story of what transpired when she was paraded by the Nigerian police on June 24, 2021.

Most media houses, who have crime correspondents in Lagos, were present at the parade, all of them reported the story, and they all sounded very similar.

After that first interview, one would expect the case to commence in court, but Chidinma was allowed to grant another interview to the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) days later. In the subsequent interview, though there were some little twists, she admitted still to stabbing Usifo.

By law, it is unconstitutional to grant interviews to the media while in police detention or going through a trial in court. It is also unconstitutional to parade a suspect as it is deemed a violation of their fundamental human right. The suspect has no right to the public anymore, not even the media. Just his or her lawyer and some direct family members privately.

But things started changing in Chidinma’s case. The 21-year-old, who had made the above confession, has now made a U-turn, denying having a hand in the murder of Usifo.

In a fresh interview that circulated on social media, Chidinma was so relaxed, looks fresh, well-dressed wearing a clean sweater, her hair neatly packed in a two-parting style, her two hands confidently placed inside her pockets, while she smiles like someone who had just been offered a scholarship in Havard.

Are we talking about someone that could face a death sentence or life imprisonment here? Or is there a strong backing from powerful personalities who are paying the police to illegally make her available for interview? Did they also coach her on how to act the script, and giving her assurance that she will be freed very soon?

Or is it that her lawyer is not professional enough to know that the trend she has taken is not good for her safety and could ruin the judicial process?

Where were these interviews done? Did the police arrange a studio at the police station for TV cameras or was Chidinma ferried from detention to an air-conditioned studio for a TV shoot? Why has she not appeared in court? Many things I do not understand.

How long are Nigerians going to wait before the police conclude the investigation? Is it that the preliminary investigation concluded is not enough to start a court process on the case? Before we know it, there could be a fake medical report that Chidinma has a mental issue and needs treatment.

This consistent and confusing interview of Chidinma is only making ridicule of the justice system of Nigeria and exposing the inadequacies of the police force.

Usifo has a family who is looking up with the hope that justice will be served to the latter. His children will grow up to a level they will read the outcome of what befalls their father, whatever that outcome is, it will build an opinion in their minds about Nigeria and its systems.

The police and media have done enough to make Chidinma one of the latest television celebrities, it is time to allow the judicial system to swing into action and do its job. We want to see her appear in court, not in studios granting interviews.