First Lady denies ordering the arrest of protest leader

• Protest leader impersonated to be someone else at the First Lady meeting


• Naomi claimed to be one of the mothers of the abducted girls

By Ehi Ekhator

Patience Jonathan allegedly ordered the arrest  of Naomi, the leader of a group known as Bring Back our Girls.

Patience Jonathan now MAMA PEACE

Naomi had last week led a bout 500 women to protest before the National Assembly over the abduction of the 234 students of Government Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State.

According to the information gathered, she was arrested for impersonation during the meeting conveyed by the First Lady at the conference room, Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Namomi, who is a Deputy Director at the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) in Abuja, allegely wrote her name as Grace, who was one of the expected invitees, instead of her real name.

It was reported that instead of Naomi writing her real name at the entrance of the conference, she wrote Grace, which is one of the names of those expected to attend the meeting from Borno State.

Patience Jonathan also revealed that Naomi lied to be one of the parents whose daughter was abducted at the Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok.

She said: “When they said they have come to lay complain to the government and the National Assembly, I asked for the leader of the mothers whose children were abducted, this woman was the one that came forward and said that her child was abducted. I believed her and I asked the Women Affairs Minister to follow her to the National Assembly.”

“This is the woman who went to National Assembly with the women in black and she claimed that her child was missing and that she is the leader of parents whose children are missing in Chibok. The Senate President believed them, I also believed them too.”

“God is leading us to the truth. Our coming out is not in vain. She called people like Oby to follow her as they also believed her. Oby is innocent and I don’t blame her because even me as First Lady, I was moved too.”

“Today, when I sighted her, I told myself that we will get to the conclusion today because one of those whose child is missing is here. But to my greatest surprise, when we asked her, she said she is a representative of one of the groups calling for the release of the girls. She wrote down her name as Grace. A whole civil servant impersonating, she should be arrested for impersonation.”

Directing the Commissioner of Police at the meeting to take action on the matter, she said: “You have to take this woman to IGP and the President.”

When asked at the meeting, Naomi confessed that she was asked to represent one of those expected to attend the meeting, adding that she had no child among the abducted girls.

She said: “It was in the morning that somebody called me from Borno State, one Mrs. Grace. She said that she was supposed to come. But that since we are here as Chibok representatives, that we should represent her here.”

She also said she has not been to Chibok for the past one year when she was asked if she has. The Minister of Women Affairs, Zainab Maina, at that time, revealed that the woman had last week claimed to be a mother of one of the abducted girls.

Responding to the speculation and accusation, the First Lady, Dam Patience Jonathan on Monday denied ordering the arrest of the leader of the protesters that went to the national Assembly, Naomi Murlah.

This was disclosed in a statement signed by the Media Assistant of the First Lady, Ayo Adewumi.

According to the statement “Our attention has been drawn to media reports that the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, ordered the arrest of a woman who attended the women stakeholders’ meeting discussing ways and best strategies to ensure the release of the abducted children of Government Girls secondary School, Chibok.

“We wish to state without any iota of equivocation that the First Lady did not order the arrest of any woman or any one for that matter before, during and after the meeting.

“It is instructive to note that the meeting ended after 3am on Monday morning and all those invited to the meeting including a handful of journalists who stayed throughout the lengthy meeting left the Presidential Villa thereafter.

“The Naomi Murlah mentioned in one of the reports came to the meeting as part of Borno delegation. The women were alarmed when someone who knew her told the meeting that she was impersonating one of the mothers of the allegedly abducted children on the basis for which she attended the meeting.”

“The women expressed their disappointment when she confirmed that she is not a biological mother to any of the abducted children.”

“Naomi left the State House with other members of the delegation. If she was arrested as claimed, then enquiries about her arrest should therefore be directed to the security agencies. It is an unfounded rumour which the First Lady knows nothing about.”

First Lady denies ordering the arrest of protest leader