ACVPN Condemns Associate Professor for alleged sexual abuse against teachers in Lagos By Ifeoma Ikem
A Non Governmental Organisation NGO, Advocate For Children and Vulnerable Persons Network (ACVPN) has condemned the continued accusation by an Associate Professor with the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies of sexual abuse of his two daughters by their teachers and one driver.
Over the weekend ACVPN and other Civil Societies Group staged a walk protest in Lagos condemning the act by Adebisi Arewa, Associate Professor, who alleged that his daughters school teachers and a driver sexually abused his two daughters.
This accusation had led to the detention of one of the teacher, Adewale Bakare, by a magistrate court in Lagos and a life sentence to one Abiodun Martins, the driver, in February 2022.
Mr Ebenezer M. Omejalile, the Chief Operating Officer of ACVPN said the
reason for the protest was against the way at which the Lagos State agencies have been responding to the issues.
Omejalile noted that it’s a protest against the Associate Professor who has been using his two girls as a Weapon, claiming they were defiled.
“One of the reasons we have to protest was because of our investigation of the last victim Mr Adewale Bakare who the girls confessed that he never touched them and we have the confession on camera.
“Arewa has been eating his cake and having it for a long time now and nobody has been able to challenge him.
He said the Prof has been using his influence in intimidating those Magistrates and they are afraid of his Antics but ACVPN is saying “No” it.
“It’s no more business as usual, we will not accept that because an ordinarily an intelligent agency would have seen this pattern since 2019, no one is asking about the whereabout of the mother of these children till date.
“We tried to investigate on our own and realised that these girls prior before now had said something that should have raised a red flag but nobody took action.
“We also realized that the police as well are not exempted as well, Arewa always have his ways with the police because he taught some of the senior officers in school.
“Immediately he puts a call across to them with different lies they will quickly charge the matter to court if they didn’t listen to him he will use the propaganda of the press that is what he has been doing for years till date before this very last case.
Omejalile described the latest development exposed how the Prof has been lying and accusing innocent people.
“When we heard of a report of defilement case by the same Prof on another school teacher, we had to think twice because it’s coming from the same Prof and it has been transferred to gender unit Ikeja state command.
“My colleague Barr Ndidi Ojo appealed to me that we should go together for more facts because no one will believe her based on the investigation we have gathered already.
“Surprisingly, on April 4, Prof Arewa arrived with his daughter, he started narrating back and forth, the officer in charge told us that the same girl when they took her inside to write statement said that the man defiled her but when they were about to record her she opened up that the man did not defile her and when questioned why she lied, she confessed that her father instructed her to lie against the man.
” This is so annoying that the Lagos state Domestic Social Violence agency representative accompanied this Professor to police gender units with all with on assertiveness to his lies which contributed to the predicament of the girl when she was to undergo separate interview.
“She said that was what my father want me to say and asked why she initially said she was abused by Adewale Bakare
Omejalile said that since 2019, the Associate Professor has accused more than five persons of sexual abuse against his daughters.
” One has been convicted, for life imprison, three are under going trials both male and female, no one is save.
“And from our investigation he was alleged that had asked some of these female he out before but some but they did not oblige to his request.
Omejalile urged the Lagos State Ministry of Youth and Social Development to stop playing to the gallery and live up to public expectations .
“They are not living up to expectation ,if they had acted right from when they said they got the first court Care order I don’t think we will be where we are now.
I will advice Lagos state government to open their eyes on this matter, it’s not about jailing these people because you want to make name.
“UN women should go back to the drawing board and readdress the issue, they shouldn’t be UN women alone, rather it should be UN women, Men, Girls and Boys because innocent people are being put in jail due to the fault of improper investigation.
Meanwhile, A certain teacher called me and said that he was thinking of resigning his position because he’s afraid that somebody would one day come and accuse him.
” The teaching profession is loosing its best anchors because of professor Arewa that is why we say ‘No’ he is not above the law, we the advocates are ready to dance naked with him, this is a fight to finish.