A soldier who was dismissed from the Nigerian army after she accused several senior officers of rape and sexual harassment has released a video condemning her treatment.
Former soldier Ruth Ogunleye made the allegations in January via her TikTok account, saying she had suffered immensely as a result of the ordeals she had endured at the hands of a general and two colonels.
Her allegations sparked outrage in Nigeria and prompted the Minister of Women’s Affairs to discuss the matter with the army chief.
After an investigation, the military denied her allegations and said the soldier had been discharged on medical grounds because she suffered from a condition that made her vulnerable. No further details were given.
Ms Ogunleye has now posted a second video on Tiktok, calling for the investigation to be made public and describing how she was raped and injected by those she accused.
“First of all, I want to thank (army spokesperson) General Onyema Nwachukwu for posting me on all social media platforms, newspapers, it shows how powerful I am,” she said.
“On January 9, 2024, I complained on social media about the way I was harassed, raped, injected and put in a coffin.
“How a gun was pointed at me, how I was handcuffed and locked up in an office for a few days.
“I want to plead with the Nigerian Army to post the outcome of the investigation on all social media platforms so that the world knows what happened,” she noted.
The outcome of the investigation was announced by General Nwachukwu on Tuesday evening.
“Upon receipt of her complaint, the Nigerian Army referred the matter to the Military Police for a thorough investigation. The investigation concluded that Colonel IB Abdulkareem did not commit the alleged offences,” he said.
He said Ms Ogunleye was discharged after she refused medical treatment by neither the National Hospital in the capital Abuja nor the Nigerian military.
He then accused her of “spreading false stories about Colonel Abdulkareem and other senior officers and using online platforms to engage in cyberbullying and defamation.”
However, women’s rights activists have called for an independent investigation.
“The military is known for not wanting to air its dirty laundry in public,” Hadiza Ado, founder of the Women and Children Initiative, told the BBC.
“If the Army investigation found that she had a medical condition that affected her, how long did she serve with that condition? Why is she coming forward now that she’s been discharged?” she asked.
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