The Officer-in-Charge
(OC) of the Legal Unit, Tin-Can Island Port Area Command of the Nigeria Customs
Service (NCS), Chief Superintendent of Customs Ibrahim Badisha, may have landed
himself in deep mess, as a Reverend Sister from the Daughters Eternal Father
Mission has accused him of allegedly pestering her for sex before a container,
belonging to the Catholic Mission is cleared.
The Reverend Sister, who pleaded anonymity,
insisted that Badisha, who doubles as a lawyer, had consistently created
unpalatable circumstances that made the clearance of the cargo container almost
impossible except she goes to bed with him. She said the items in the
container, which Badisha threatened to impound due to her “stubbornness” was
for Catholic charity donated by another Catholic Mission in the United States.
Daily Sun gathered that the consignment included
cars and relief materials for running a mission, catering for physically
challenged persons and others with special needs. The Reverend Sister explained
further that after the physical examination of the containerised consignment by
the Customs, Badisha allegedly accused the Reverend Sisters of concealing the
vehicles.
She claimed that, because she consistently rebuffed
Badisha’s alleged amorous advances, the officer, cashing in on his position as
Officer-in-Charge of the Legal Unit at the Tin-Can Island Port Area Command,
had single-handedly registered the container as seizure, claiming the vehicles
were concealed. “We have three cars duly paid for, wheel chair and used clothes
and other relief items inside the container donated to us by Sisters in the
United States. Our Superior had to travel from US down to Nigeria because of
this very container to explain that the pattern over there is quite different
from Nigeria.
Over there, if it is a donated item, they don’t
bother to put it in bill of lading; they just put it in since it is for
charity,” the victim said. She went on: “After physical examination has been
conducted, we asked that he should raise a debit note for us, that we are ready
to pay but he wouldn’t give in but for him to tell me I’m going to cry and
suffer because of this very container, which means he knows what he is doing.”
Continuing, she said: “We got to know him after we cleared a container at
Tin-Can sometime ago.
But this is another container that was kept in his
custody and he withheld it because he said he did not get anything from us from
the former container that was cleared. When I started coming for the clearance
of this container, he began making all sorts of advances to me, telling me that
I was not yet a woman and I wouldn’t be a woman if I had not been taken to bed.
That it was a man that would treat me right, saying he wanted to have me for a
while.”
“The OC, Legal, made different advances to me, but
God will not let him. He single-handedly registered the container as seizure,
saying I was going to cry and suffer because of this container.” She added: “We
used to be two but sometimes, because we don’t have enough money, one person
will come. So, any time he sees me, he will be making advances, saying the
other Sister is an ‘old school’, that I am the real person he is looking for.
Some of his colleagues will even tell him that he should not make that kind of
joke because these are holy women of God but he will tell them that there is
nothing like being holy.”
The Sisters are, therefore, demanding a public
apology from the Customs officer for the alleged sexual harassment as well as
the prompt release of their container, which, according to sources, the Customs
Area Controller (CAC), has directed to be released. It was learnt that the
Commissioner of Ports Authority Police Command (PAPC), Mrs. Sherifat
Disu-Olajoku, has ordered for the arrest of Badisha. When contacted, the
Customs officer, Badisha, told CrimeWatch that the Reverend Sister was out to
blackmail him.
“I did not make love overtures to her. My sin was
that the container was under quoted. Some of the goods in the container were
not quoted. So, that was what we call concealment. If a container comes in and
some goods were concealed, the container would be seized.” “I am not the
person, who discovered that some of the goods were concealed. I am just the
O/C, Legal, who offer advice to the service.
Why on earth should I make advances to a Reverend
Sister? She was only trying to whip up sympathy. She was turning the seizure of
her goods to religious something. She should know that because she is a
Reverend Sister does not give her the right to cheat on the Federal Government.
I did not make love advances to her. God is the ultimate judge. So, He will
judge everyone according to his deeds.”
No comments:
Post a Comment