RAYMOND OZOJI reports
Investigations into the incident of August 15th this year where a certain professor of the Chinese Language Department of Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka, named Professor Ifeanyi Sunny Odinye, was stripped naked on campus in broad daylight and brutally beaten to the point of death by students of the university over sexual allegations with a female student, a recent video has popped up online where one of the mob members who molested Prof. Odinye confessed that the whole episode was a setup and that the departmental president was responsible for the setup against the lecturer.
Although the Public Relations Officer of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, comrade Alloy Emeka Attah, told this journalist that management is currently handling the matter with a view to dispensing justice but the video evidence of the brutality against the professor showed that the law must take its full cause and perpetrators brought to justice, if established it was indeed a setup.
Meanwhile a press statement from the Concerned Youths of Ogbunike Community Oyi Local Government Area of Anambra State, where Prof. Ifeanyi Sunny Odinye hails from, has condemned in totality the mob attack unleashed on Prof. Odinye, stressing that he deserved justice.
The statement signed by the convener Chief Okey Nwosu and the secretary Chibuike Uloka reads " The concerned youths of Ogbunike community have watched with shock and deep dismay the viral video showing Prof. Ifeanyi Sunny Odinye, our illustrious son, Head of the Department of Chinese Studies and the first indigenous Professor of Chinese Language in Nigeria and Africa, being set upon and humiliated by a mob on the campus of Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka.
We state clearly: no allegation, proven or unproven, justifies mob action against any human being. Nigerian law guarantees every citizen, lecturer or student, the right to a fair hearing before any competent authority. What was done to Prof. Odinye was "jungle justice," and we condemn it without reservation.
Prof. Odinye has spent decades building an extraordinary academic legacy, pioneering the teaching of the Chinese language in this country, mentoring generations of students, and bringing honour to Ogbunike, Anambra State, and Nigeria. He is a man of strong moral and academic standing: a devoted father and husband, deeply family-oriented, and known within his household and community for his love and regard for the girl-child.
Accounts from friends and colleagues within the university community have consistently described him as a diligent man who keeps his focus on his work and steers clear of trivial or unbecoming conduct. The outpouring of support he has received in the wake of this incident has been overwhelming, and it is on this strength of character that we demand a full-scale, transparent investigation into what actually happened.
We Therefore Demand: Immediate arrest and prosecution of all persons who participated in the assault, in line with the law. A thorough, impartial and transparent investigation into the underlying allegation, conducted by the appropriate university and security authorities, with community and family representatives permitted to observe.
Urgent and continuing medical attention for Prof. Odinye, and full accountability for his safety going forward.Due process for everyone involved: we will not prejudge the facts, and we expect the same restraint from others, including on social media, until the investigation is complete.
Ogbunike stands firmly behind her son at this time. We trust the university and security agencies to act swiftly and fairly. Should there be any failure to protect him or to pursue justice, the community reserves the right to take further legitimate steps to defend his interests
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