The family
of a Vivian Ndukwu, 28, who was reported to have passed due to post-delivery complication,
has demanded that the marriage rites of their late daughter must be performed
by a pastor of the Christ Embassy, who has been accused of being responsible
for the pregnancy that allegedly led to her death.
Punch
reports that 29-year-old pastor, identified simply as Hillary, who is currently
under detention at the State Criminal Investigations Department, Yaba, Lagos,
was accused by the family to have had a secret romantic relationship with the
deceased, who was a choir member in the church. To avoid a scandal, the couple
had decided to keep the relationship a secret until Vivian became pregnant.
When it
became obvious that they could no longer keep the pregnancy a secret, Vivian
was said to have agreed with Hillary that she should relocate to Agbara town in
Ogun State to stay with a woman who had an orphanage. Vivian allegedly told her
parents that she was going to Abuja. She stayed at the orphanage until she was
delivered of a baby girl on May 3, 2014.
It was
learnt that eight days after the delivery of the baby, Vivian was taken to a
hospital after she complained of fever and headache. She eventually died, while
her remains had been taken to the Badagry General Hospital morgue.
The owner of
the orphanage, Mrs. Grace Kato, however, claimed that Vivian never stayed at
her place. She said:
“Vivian
called me three days after the birth of her baby. She said she wanted me to
help her with the hospital bills, that she was stranded in the hospital. Out of
compassion, I went to the hospital to help.”
She admitted
that she took Vivian home after delivery to rest at her place for two days
before returning to her parents. She added that Vivian, however, ended up
staying at her place for five days before she died.
She said:
“I brought her to my house to rest for a day
or two before taking her to her parents. In the process, I had to travel for my
uncle’s burial. That was why she stayed that long because she was waiting for
me to return. I came back on Saturday night, May 10, and the next day, she
complained of a slight headache and we took her to another hospital nearby.
That was where she died.”
The hospital
where Vivian was said to have died, claimed that she was rushed to the hospital
unstable and restless. According to a doctor in the hospital, the people on
duty stabilised her condition and referred her to a general hospital. The
source, who preferred to remain anonymous, said:
“She was
brought in on May 11, at about 1.20pm, unstable and restless. The story was
that her complaint started that morning. Her blood pressure was also high.
Being that we were not in possession of her past medical records, we acted
based on clinical situation and referred her to a general hospital.
The people
that brought her left and so there was no one to take her to where she had been
referred to hours after stabilising her condition. Several calls to the number
they gave us were replied with one story or the other. At some point, the lady
started gasping, and eventually died. It was not until the following day that
they came to pick up her remains.”
The father
of the deceased, Emmanuel Ndukwu, told our correspondent on the telephone that
the orphanage founder had agreed with her late daughter to take custody of the
child after delivery without the consent of the family. He said he and his wife
knew nothing about the pregnancy, adding that his daughter left his house and
told the family that she was going to Abuja.
He said:
“After
telling us that she was going to Abuja, we did not hear from her until her
death. But we later learnt that Grace (orphanage owner) and her husband had
organised a naming ceremony for the new baby without informing us.
Emmanuel
said he was not aware of the relationship between the pastor and his daughter
until the sad incident. He said:
“My family
and the pastor’s family have met and we agreed that Hillary will perform all
the marriage rites for my late daughter according to the tradition of our
people. We are doing this because a child is involved. The pastor did not deny
his responsibility, so the normal thing must be done.”
The state
Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide, confirmed Vivian’s death and
added that the matter was still under investigation.
She said,
“The matter is under investigation at the Homicide Section of the SCID. The
police is not aware of any negotiation between the two families.
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