We live in a country supposedly governed by the rule of law, a country where a court order should trump the bidding of anybody, but that only seems to apply to the common man. Why else would a mother be crying for justice over three years after her three biological children were abducted by known persons? This is Lamide Agunloye’s story.
In 2012, after a year of separation from her ex-husband, Dare Ajayi – during which she had been in custody of and solely responsible for the welfare of their sons – Lamide’s sons were taken from her Abuja home forcefully after Dare Ajayi is said to have jumped the fence, broken the door and beaten up the house maid.
Efforts to gain relief from police intervention were frustrated as the Police tagged it a domestic issue. The children were taken to the home of popular Lagos pastor Ituah Ighodalo, whose wife and businesswoman Ibidun Ighodalo is sister to Dare Ajayi. What should have been a simple case of a man of God and his wife doing what is right by returning the children to their legal guardian has turned out to be a deliberately orchestrated nightmare for Lamide Agunloye.
The lady and her brothers were beaten up by the Ighodalo's security agents, at Dare's instance, when they attempted to sort it out as a family issue. The Ighodalos are no doubt a power couple, with Ibidun running a successful events management company and her husband heading a Redeemed Christian Church of God congregation that is filled with many rich and powerful individuals.
When the news first broke, many expressed doubt that a man of God and his wife would go against the law, and they urged Lamide to go to court. Over a year later, with a court judgment (FAM/25y/14) determining that Dare indeed kidnapped the children, awarding Lamide legal physical custody of all three children and granting Dare visitation rights every other weekend, Lamide has remained unable to gain actual physical custody of her children.
In the face of the court order, they have taken to boasting about their clout, claiming to know the Chief Justice of the State amongst other influential people – they have made it clear that they have no intention of obeying court orders. Yet thousands sit in their church, not critical of the example that the leaders of the flock are laying.
They remain quiet in the face of the injustice that has seen a mother denied access to her children, an injustice being perpetuated by a so-called man of God and his wife. What hope is there when the very people who should be defenders of the law are the law breakers? What hope is there for parents when extended family members can willy-nilly snatch children and hold them for years because they are amongst society's rich and powerful?
What respite do parents have when institutions that should be instilling morality and order are aiding and abetting lawlessness as did Mrs. Durand, the proprietress of Greenwood School, Ikoyi? When Court Officers and Lamide Agunloye, with a court judgment in her favor, approached the school in which her sons are currently enrolled by the Ighodalos, instead of allowing them entrance and access to the children who were in school at the time, Mrs. Durand joined the charade by denying them entrance and spiriting the children to Asue Ighodalo who arrived at the school with armed police officers.
After Lamide's attempt to enforce judgment, the Ighodalos hurriedly filed an appeal before a Lagos High Court, asking for a stay of execution. It is nothing short of appalling that Dare Ajayi, Pastor Ituah and Ibidun Ighodalo, Asue Ighodalo, Mrs. Durand and so many others who should know better are being allowed to get away with several crimes.
When Lamide left her husband after his violent antics which included an attempt at drowning her and flinging her kids across the room, it was because she feared for her safety and that of her children. A court, considering the merits of the situation, deemed it fit to grant her sole custody to the children. It is thus very worrisome that it is this same violent father who, through his sister and her husband, still has access to the children, whereas Lamide remains subjected to the intimidation tactics of the Ighodalo and her ex-husband.
She is left with nothing but videos from three heavily supervised visits in three years with three young impressionable sons who are being fed misleading information to believe their mother left them. In a country where the rule of law truly prevails, the Ighodalos and Dare Ajayi would be behind bars for kidnapping three children and for obstructing justice.
In a country where the rule of law prevails, Olamide Agunloye’s story would have a happy ending.
Olamide Agunloye's statement below...
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