Police, deceased family bicker over body of INEC staff

The dead body of a former INEC staff Mr. Okon Bassey is causing ripples in Calabar as the family of the deceased and the Nigeria Police are neck deep in legal and counter legal tussles.

Already, a faction of the deceased’s family led by the family head, Gideon Bassey, has dragged Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) Zone 6, and three others to court for abuse of human right and unnecessary meddlesomeness, threat, intimidation and corrupt practices while the deceased is yet to be buried, nine months after his death.

The petitioner accused the police of abuse of powers and attacking the sister of the deceased, Mrs. Utang Clement, on a purely civil matter, which is presently before a court of justice with suit, no. HC/219/2017 and HC/201/2017.

They further alleged that the deceased, who died on the 22nd of October 2016, never accepted the said Patricia as his legitimate child, which she is claiming to be.
However, in a counter suit, Patricia said as a legitimate daughter of the deceased, she had applied for a letter of administration for the Estate of the deceased and with that, she was given the sum of N1.2 million by INEC for the burial of her father who is yet to be buried.

Bassey is also relying on a letter of administration, which she got from the High Court, giving her all the rights and powers to administer the deceased’s property. She maintained that the other parties were just interested in taking over her father’s estate and depriving her of everything.

The Zonal Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Abeng said one Patricia Okon Bassey of Number 9 Brooks Street, Calabar had reported a case of burglary and theft against Gideon and others and “the police had actually started an investigation but Gideon was yet to be invited. We only invited the buyer of the Mercedes Benz car alleged to have been stolen from the deceased’s compound in the middle of the night.

“But Gideon and the rest have gone to court and Police is a law abiding organization, we cannot progress when the matter is pending in court. So for now the police is doing nothing. We are waiting to get the result from court whatever the decision is.  The only person they arrested is the woman who bought the car, one Rita Ekpenyong, we cannot go on until the matter is determined and she has since been released”.