Father Patrick + Soyinka on Ribadu's removal | Welcome to Linda Ikeji's Blog

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Saturday 29 December 2007

Father Patrick + Soyinka on Ribadu's removal

I am Catholic and whenever I read anything negative about our Catholic priests, it does something to me.

Here's a story, courtesy Sunnewsonline, about a Priest, a woman, an illicit affair and an abortion.

Wearied by the papal oath of celibacy, which insists on strict abstinence from sex and marriage, a Catholic priest, Reverend Father Patrick Okon, who allegedly yielded to things of the flesh, has found himself trapped in the whirlpool of an abortion-related web.With the wind now taken out of the sail of his six months of sizzling romance with one Miss. Ebere Eze, who is still battling to overcome abortion complications she alleged was instigated by the priest, Father Okon is now torn between renouncing the vow he entered into with the Papacy with a view to getting his lover permanently hooked and doing all he can to keep the liaison a guided secret.

Begun somewhere at Agege, Lagos, in December 2006, Ebere told Saturday Sun that she met Father Okon at Tasty Fried Chicken (TFC) where the priest initially introduced himself as a lawyer on an attachment with Saint Kizito Catholic Church, Iju, Agege, Lagos.

From one declaration to another, Father Okon, allegedly swore his immortal love for Ebere, which culminated in the promise of marriage and an exchange of engagement ring between Ebere and the Reverend Father.

During the flourishing period of their liaison, which peaked when Father Okon relocated to Saints Peter and Paul, Somolu, a parish, the stealthy romance, which transpired without the parish priest’s knowledge according to Ebere, usually involved her being smuggled in with the assistance of the security man at the gate.While this practice of sneaking her into the Priory endured, Ebere said she could not understand why this was so, even as Okon had consistently said he was a lawyer and not a worker in the Lord’s vineyard. At Saints Peter and Paul’s, Somolu, where she eventually found out that Okon was indeed a priest, contrary to his previous claim, sometime in April, Ebere said she was already pregnant for him.

Her refusal to yield ground for fear of risking her life, Ebere said, dangerously pitched her against Okon. But desperate to ensure that the looming scandal did not morph into an institutional humiliation, following a series of failed persuasions from the priest on his lover girl, Ebere told Saturday Sun that Okon tricked her into going out for ride with him in June 2007. And at a spot along Lagos-Ibadan expressway, just after the crusade ground, Okon, in a BMW 3 Series, pulled up at a joint, where he ordered drinks (a Star lager beer for himself and a small bottle of Guinness Stout for Ebere) for both of them.

Among other reasons the priest advanced for insisting on the termination of the pregnancy, Ebere alleged, was the cost of bringing up a child. According to her, just as she was about to take her drink, it was then the priest remembered he forgot something in the car and asked her to go get it for him.

Unsuspectingly, she returned to take her drink, which she also alleged might have been laced with poison.

Ebere further alleged that after the drink, she could neither remember how she made it back with Father Okon to the Reverend fathers’ house at Saint Peter and Paul, Somolu nor how her under wear got soaked with blood. She disclosed that she woke up at about 5:pm, after several hours of unconsciousness to find herself protected with sanitary towel heavily flooded with her own blood. Terribly weak to go back to Oshodi, where she lives with her brother, and not knowing what to tell him was responsible for her profuse bleeding, Ebere said she spent two nights in Okon’s apartment.

Devastated by what she alleged Father Okon had done to her, by discretely administering an abortion on her, Ebere said she threatened to let the world know what he had done to her. According to her, since the development, she has been experiencing an erratic menstrual flow, sometimes twice in a month or once in two months, coupled with loss of weight.

Some of the texts purportedly sent to Ebere and which she forwarded to this reporter, are reproduced below:
“Ebere, it is Appiah and Fabian that paid you to betray me and you did it. How much did they give you? Can you see the prove (sic) of the love you had for me? You told me the other time you did not have the Cardinal’s number, where did you get this from? All I want is peace, once more, I am sorry for the pain I caused you”.

“Let us meet and talk. Friends do have misunderstanding. I am in love with you. Don’t let anyone separate us. When can we see? I am sorry for hurting you”.

“I left the Church (Saint Peter and Paul) since June. I work in a school (Missionary Society of Saint Paul, Iperu-Remo, Ogun State). So you have to arrange for another place where we can meet during the week”.

“Come to Sagamu. I am at RSS Sagamu. When you get to the park, I will pick you up”.

“Eby, if it is marriage you want, let us meet and talk. I may leave my job before end of the year”.

“Have you ever offended God and asked Him to forgive you? That is what I am asking of you. I may leave my ministry soon and I need you with me”.

“Please don’t sleep with anybody. I can’t cope without you. Please forgive. I will start taking good care of you please”.

And so on and so forth.

If you want to read all the sordid details, then go to sunnewsonline.com

What do you guys think of this story?

Soyinka on Ribadu's removal
Howmany of you know that Mallam Nuhu Ribadu has been removed as the chairman of the Economic and Financial crimes Commission (EFCC)?

That's sad huh? People have been reacting to it, describing it as a contemptuous New Year gift, that constitutes an assault on the corporate integrity of the nation.

The person most pained is Professor Wole Soyinka. In a press statement yesterday, Soyinka said Ribadu’s removal would have a far more devastating impact on the psyche of the Nigerian nation “than the deadly event that now threatens to destabilize Pakistan,” through the assassination of her democratic front runner, Benazir Bhutto.

Soyinka said the precarious socio-political condition into which the Pakistani people have been thrown, echoed, in both parallel and divergent directions, the blow dealt to the Nigerian nation by the “assassination” of the head of the EFCC.

The Nobel Laureate said Ribadu had commenced “the process of restoring dignity to a people whose nation has become a byword for the most breath-taking scam in high-places, for endemic corruption, contempt for accountability and transparency and the abuse of national resources in the pursuit of personal and party power consolidation.”With the removal of Ribadu, he said the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had proven yet again that there is no reformist agenda possible within its ranks.

Also, Lagos lawyer and human rights activist, Chief Gani Fawehinmi said with the removal of Ribadu, the government has subverted the anti-corruption crusade embarked upon by the EFCC under the outstanding leadership of Ribadu.

What's your view on Ribadu's removal?

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nigeria has problems!May be God will have to come down from heaven to correct all the anomalies in our great nation.Enemies of progress are at work again.What is the cause of his removal?I think he's been doing a great job so far.The people who removed him should have a rethink and restore him back to continue his good work.
I am a catholic too and it can be heart rendering when one hears funny stories about our priests.There are some really terrible priests who disgrace the church with their illicit acts.I used to think all these rumours we hear about priests are all lies but as i grew older, I started to see things some of these guys do.When My non catholic friends say funny things about catholic priests now I don't defend them again because some of these stories might be true and I'm not rulling out the fact that there are still good priests.No body was FORCED in to prieshood and celibacy if any priest feels he can no longer continue,(cause it's really hard work o)he should LEAVE the prieshood instead of disgracing the church and Such person will not be crucified for leaving. CYNTHIA!

Anonymous said...

Ribadu's removal? Well...Honestly, not much, cos I am totally [you know]. This is a big test for Nigeria and Nigerians. The next few weeks will unquestionably decide a lot. Corruption whether we agree or not is our number 1 problem, and our pariah status hasn’t been helped by nonsense. The one good thing about this is that Yardy is at least showing his true colours.

Anonymous said...

I am not surprised at Mallam Ribadu's removal. The man is too honest and thorough and poses a threat to our greedy rulers.

Did you also know that President Yaradua and ex governor Ibori are very close? In fact Ibori contributed immensely to Yaradua winning this election.

Yaradua also tried to return the favour by trying to cover up for Ibori when EFCC were probing him. Unfortunately for him, the British government caught on and by the time they accused Yaradua of shielding Ibori, he had no choice but to wash his hands off the matter and allow them carry on with their investigations.

So na like dis e pain dem reach shey?! *hiss* Yeye people! If dem like make dem comot Mallam Ribadu or any other honest official...it doesn't change the fact that people know how corrupt they are. We are not stupid...our hands are just tied...

I hope Wole Soyinka and the other honest loyalists speaking out about this are protecting themselves adequately, before dem go do dem wetin dem bin do Dele Giwa...

Happy new year in advance girl.

noname said...

hahahahah thank you ooooo. linda this news ehn , it most amazing i am catholic and i have four uncles who are priest and i pray none of this ever happen to them. how de hell can the woman not know is a priest. am dissapointed because as the years go by , the catholic church is really become tainted.

lemonade factory said...

linda,this one na wah ho!!!!

Anonymous said...

Ribadu has not been removed. He is only proceeding on study leave. It is only for one year o! He will be back.

I think it is actually great! EFCC should be an institution and not a one man band. If Ribadu dies today. Will the anti corruption war not go on ?

Anonymous said...

what i think about all this? first, i believe you can write better english than: 'trapped in the whirlpool of an abortion-related web' or 'abortion complications she alleged were instigated by the priest'. you are supposed to have received some education. please show it. second, what about your own views on ribadu's removal, have you made them known? frankly, i think the efcc should be an institution, not a one-man army. and i haven't forgotten the ignoble part it took in the travesty that was the last general elections. nor have i stopped being aware of its reluctance to touch any case that has 'obj' stamped on it. the efcc needs to be investigated and reformed. not that removing the mallam will work any magic. i don't trust the climate under which these things are happening. umaru, aka baba go-slow, is showing his immediate constituency that he is not dead.

Anonymous said...

I read he was actually on study-leave though its indirectly temporary removal. Thanks for you supply of Nigerian gist Linda!

Here's my new blog:

http://missladidi.blogspot.com

Please help me publicize!!

Thanks!

LurLar said...

Happy New Year!!!

james kwasi said...

d priest issue all boils down to why should d lady involved release herself unto a man who she does not know much about. linda maybe u should do something or post an info on d 'importance of a woman's worth' let d ladies know dey are not suppose to sell themselves cheap! it's a pity dat's what is in vogue in our mordern world but against d desire of d Creator; sex b/4 marriage. well, d ribadu issue i won't want to touch 'cos it has a political effect in it. am not a politician. what ever dey do, d 'why' of it is best known to them. but i know something for sure. ' whatever dey sow, dey reap'. some sowed years back and dey indeed reaped last year either for better or bad, many are still gonna reap. so dear let's leave dem alone. kwasey.

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