PRISON OFFICIAL APPEARS BEFORE HOUSE OF REPS FOR SLAPPING FEMALE LAWMAKER

Female lawmaker and Prison official that slapped her

The House of Representatives Committee on Interior yesterday grilled the Controller-General of the Nigeria Prisons Service (NPS) Dr Peter Ekpendu over the alleged assault on a female lawmaker by his men last Wednesday.

Rep Mrakpor Onyeamaechi Joan (PDP, Delta) was said to have been “slapped and assaulted” by an aide to the prisons CG, after she reportedly blocked his principal’s convoy who was at the National Assembly.

The House consequently passed a motion on Thursday summoning Ekpendu as well as the policemen and DSS personnel attached to the National Assembly and the Sergeant-at-arms to appear before the interior committee, which was given today to submit its report.

The prisons CG said his vehicles had passed when the incident took place, adding that it was the vehicles of two of his deputies that were involved in the incident.

He said: “I left the National Assembly complex to attend another assignment. I left in company of some officers, DCG Admin, Jafaru Ahmed and DCG Budget and Finance making it a total of 6 vehicles in the convoy.

 “Before the incident, the escort, my vehicle and the backup had passed. So, I was never a witness to the incident. I had to be informed by the CG Civil Defence who called my attention to the report in his office the following day.”

He said he immediately instituted an investigation and issued a query to the affected officers the following day.

He said he had taken responsibility for all that happened and that if found guilty, “the punishment for those involved will not be anything less than dismissal as it is an embarrassment to the service.” He later apologized to the lawmakers for the incident.

Testifying before the committee, the female lawmaker, Joan, said she was assaulted and insulted by a Senior Inspector of Prisons (SIP) Mr. Dan Odeh, at the exit gate to the National Assembly on that day.