BY KUFRE ETUK, UYO
Barely six hours after the Akwa Ibom State Police Command issued a press release ordering for discreet investigation into the Deeper Life High School saga based on the petition of one Deborah Okezie, the Akwa Ibom State Police Command has reportedly tilted to appease the complainant by arresting and detaining a-74-year old medical doctor, Dr. Effiong Udimidue, and five staff members of the Deeper Life High School, Uyo campus.
Findings showed that the 74 years old medical practitioner, Dr. Udimidue, was never mentioned in the petition by Mrs. Okezie but was invited by the police for comments.
Eye witness account has it that after giving his comments, the police allegedly stripped Dr. Udimidue to pant and ordered him into the cell with five other staff members of the school.
Dr. Udimidue, a retired medical doctor with the state government who also owns a hospital, is said to be a member of the School Management Committee of the Deeper Life High School, Uyo Campus.
Meanwhile, invitation by the police to Deeper Life High School sighted by this reporter, indicated three persons were invited to appear before the Police Investigation Panel including two accused students Ola, Shalom and the House Master, Mr. Joseph based on Mrs. Okezie’s petition.
On the detained five staff members of the Deeper Life High School, the police have refused to give reasons for their detention as, according to an eye witness, their statements never implicated them.
However, while in the police headquarters Ikot Akpan Abia, some invitees to the investigation panel had expressed displeasure in the way members of the police investigation panel were relating with Deborah Okezie who was said to be boasting and promising to deal with staff of the Deeper Life school using the police.
However, pieces of information from certain quarters indicated that, police have allegedly concluded plans with Deborah Okezie’s lawyer to drag the detained 74 years old medical doctor and five other detained staff of Deeper Life High School to Magistrate court where the accused will be denied bail by the Magistrate for lack of jurisdiction, thereby further detaining them at the Correctional Centre till a case is file at the high court.
Prior to Tuesday’s invitation, one of the House Masters had disclosed how a female police officer threatened to detain him if he failed to write his statement based on what she dictated to him, which the house Master said was indirectly implicating him.
Reacting to the issue, the Police Public Relations Officer, Akwa Ibom State Command SP Odiko MacDon who spoke with this reporter at 9:44pm through phone call, with a coarse sleepy voice, said he was not aware of the case and expressed surprise over the detention of a 74 year old medical doctor.
He assured to reach out to appropriate quarters to get more information on what transpired.
It could be recalled that around 1PM on Tuesday 5 January, 2021, the Akwa Ibom State Police Command had issued a press release indicating that, “The Akwa Ibom State Police Command is in receipt of a petition by one Mrs. Deborah Archibong, aged 41yrs, mother of one Don-Davis Iniobong Archibong ‘m’, aged 11yrs, a student of Deeper Life High School, Idoro Road, Uyo, wherein she alleged that her son, Master Don-Davis Iniobong, was inhumanly treated, sexually molested and suffered starvation, against one Mrs Ndidi Solomon, aged 45yrs and three (3) others.
“The Commissioner of Police, CP AMIENGHEME ANDREW, fdc has ordered a discreet investigation into the matter and the said investigation has commenced immediately.
“The CP, while enjoining all parties involved to excercise restraint pending the outcome of the investigation, has assured the good people of Akwa Ibom State that no stone will be left unturned in unraveling the truth, and that the outcome of the investigation will be made known to the general public.”
