The Army authority had said that the soldier, who died June 16, 2024, at Aba, in Abia State committed suicide, but his community members said that they believed that the officer was assassinated.
In a petition addressed to the GOC, 82 Division, Enugu, which was sighted by The PUNCH on Wednesday, the community alleged that there is more to the death of the soldier, who hailed from the community.
The petition, which was written by I. C. Otti and Max Amadi on behalf of Logara Community Development Union, alleged that the soldier, who had three months to retire, was killed.
The petition read in part, “We are solicitors to the Logara Community Development Union (hereinafter referred to as our client) and on whose express instruction we address the instant petition/SOS to you.
“Our client is the highest governing body in the Logara autonomous community, Ngor Okpala Local Government Area, Imo State. The crux of the matter is that:
“The attention of our client was drawn to information on the social and conventional media on the 16th of June 2024 to an alleged suicide incident, committed by an Army officer in Aba, Abia State. Our clients were heartbroken to subsequently discover that the alleged suicide involved their son, Warrant Officer (WO) Vitalis Eke, who hails from Awogwu village, Logara autonomous community, Ngor Okpala LGA.
“As it is normal, our client dispatched emissaries to Aba to get first-hand information from the Army authorities, and check on his wife and family, only to see that the Army authorities whisked away his wife and children to an unknown destination, which later turned out to be the Army Operational Base at Ngwa High School.
“Regrettably, all efforts by our client’s delegates to interface with the Army authorities at Aba failed as they were prevented access to the facility, even after introducing themselves and their mission to some senior officers. This prompted them to return without seeing the wife of the late officer.”
The petition further averred that the community became worried when seven days after the incident, the Army did not release any official information or notify the family about the whereabouts of their breadwinner, instead, it was reported that the deceased committed suicide.
Not satisfied with the suicide report the community, in the petition, “questions how on the date of the incident, while reporting the alleged suicide incident of a man who was said not to have left a suicide note, the Army can say that ‘findings revealed that the SNCO decided to take his life based on some of the allegations against him.’ Who conducted the findings? When were the findings conducted?”
It added, “Our client strongly contends that the above stories were made up to cover an obvious assassination of an officer who has served his fatherland for several years, defended his country during his youthful years, and was preparing to retire in three months.”
“Again, our client is worried that the sick wife of the late officer who is suffering from a stroke was whisked away with his children and all occupants of his house and detained at the Ngwa High School for over 48 hours without sympathy and in gross violation of their rights to liberty and human dignity.
“To date, the Army authorities are yet to notify the family and the general public of the incident at Ngwa High School and what truly transpired.
“Our client contends that the late officer did not need the rifle of another person to commit suicide, since he had his rifle and a pistol attached to him as a Warrant Officer. Our client strongly suspects that their son was killed by those who framed him with the IPOB/ESN collaboration allegation because they know that the late officer will come out clean from the allegation.
Efforts to reach the Army authorities proved abortive as calls and messages sent to the known number of the spokesperson were neither picked up nor replied to.
