Mother cries out as army detains son for seven months over old Facebook video
A civilian, Emmanuel Odaudu, has been languishing in the Nigerian Military Special Investigation Bureau underground cell in Abuja for seven months over an old Facebook video.
PUNCH Metro gathered that Emmanuel’s ordeal started when he was in the army.
He was said to have posted on social media short videos of himself rapping while in uniform.
The videos, some of which went viral, reportedly infuriated the military authorities, leading to his arrest and detention for three months.
Emmanuel’s mother, Helen, who spoke to PUNCH Metro on Wednesday, said her son was later released, but told he would be redeployed to Maiduguri over the matter.
However, while awaiting his redeployment, Helen said the Commanding Officer, 29 Battalion Nigerian Army, Bori Camp, Port Harcourt, dismissed her son over another video he made months before his detention.
She said, “My son told me he made a post on Facebook advising people to get their permanent voter cards to vote for good governance. He was also wearing his uniform in that video, but he deleted it almost immediately. Before he deleted it, a celebrity, Charly Boy, reposted it and the commanding officer told him he had been dismissed because of that video. After his dismissal on October 5, 2017, my son returned home.”
Helen said her son was busy with his life when the military tracked him to Otukpo, Benue State, on June 12, 2020, on the allegation that he impersonated the Army in another video seen on social media.
PUNCH Metro learnt that one of Emmanuel’s old videos while in the army was shared on Facebook.
The military was said to have ordered his arrest over it.
“What happened was that Facebook shared the memory of my son’s old video and the military authorities can verify that on his page. But because he was a civilian as of the time Facebook reposted the video, they said he was impersonating. They blindfolded him, chained both his hands and legs and took him away without disclosing their destination to us,” the mother added.
The 40-year-old said the family tracked Emmanuel to an underground cell in Port Harcourt. Punch
