•’We refused when rapist asked us to undress…and we started shouting for help’

BY ANAYO OKOLI

PERHAPS the bravery of Army generals from Ovim community in Isiukwuato Council of Abia State rubbed off on students of Methodist Girls Model Secondary, who gallantly faced a rapist who invaded their dormitory and resisted him from raping any of them. Ovim town could be referred to the Langtang of the South-East because of the large number of military generals it has produced.

It is home to Gen. Ike Nwachukwu, ret., Real Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu, ret., and the immediate past Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika, ret., among others. So, one may tempted to say that courage runs in the community, which gave the young girls of Ovim College the bravery to confront a rampaging rapist and prevented him from having canal knowledge of them.

Though, 15 of the students were wounded by the rapist in the incident that happened last weekend, they stopped him from succeeding in his mission.

Narrating their ordeal to the lawmaker representing the area at the House of Representatives, Hon. Nkiruka Onyejiocha, who paid a visit to the school, Miss Chidinma Nwadubem, an SS2 student, explained that they were sleeping when suddenly the hoodlum broke into the dormitory in an attempt to rape them.

According to her, the suspected rapist was wearing a mask and was moving from bed to bed “flashing his torchlight” on the students and ordering them to wake.

The traumatized 15-year-old said that the suspect claimed that they were many and that they had killed all the security guards on duty at the school gate, and that the entire dormitory had been surrounded by his colleagues.

“The rapist ordered us to ‘simply cooperate,’ warning that any who dared him would be killed like the security guards. We, however, did not succumb to the threat despite physical assault by the rapist”, she narrated.

“When he broke into the dormitory, he ordered us to separate ourselves into two groups, virgins and non-virgins. He now ordered us to undress but when we refused, he started hitting us with the iron rod in his hand.

“We said we would not undress; that even if he liked, let him kill us. It was at that point that all of us started shouting on top of our voices and crying for help”.

She said that it was at point that “he started breaking our heads with the rod before escaping by scaling the fence.”

In her remarks, Onyejiocha, who is an Old Girl of the school, expressed anger over the incident and called on the Inspector General of Police to ensure immediate arrest and prosecution of the rapist.

She described the incident as “terrorism against the girl-child” which she said must be resisted.

IKPEAZU VISITS SCHOOL

Governor Okezie Ikpeazu, accompanied by his wife, Nkechi, also visited the school to assess the security arrangement there with a view to forestalling future occurrence of the attempted rape.

The governor, who went round the school, later addressed the students at the school hall and assured them that government would do everything possible to protect them and prevent future attempts to disrupt their peace and security.

He directed security agencies to ensure the immediate arrest and prosecution of the attacker who scaled the school’s fence to attack the students.

Ikpeazu directed that an electricity transformer provided to the school to ensure regular power supply. He also directed the Chairman of Isuikwuato Local Government Area, Chief Nnamdi Udueze, to immediately clear the bush within the institution and put in place a sustainable plan for the regular clearing of overgrown grass there.

He also directed that the medical bill of the girls who were injured during the abortive rape incident be forwarded to him for reimbursement and authorized the immediate extension of the fenced area of the dormitory to include the convenience building.

Conducting the governor round the school, the Principal, Ezinne Oluchi Ibenye, alongside the proprietor, Rt. Rev. Obadiah Agbai, commended him for personally visiting. She explained that no student was raped by the hoodlum, whom, she said, took advantage of the downpour of that day to invade the dormitory area.

“My dear governor, I can assure you that no student of this school was raped as our brave students fought the hoodlum and raised the alarm and we arrived promptly. Unfortunately the hoodlum wounded some students with a rod but they have all been treated and discharged”, she said.