Alleged Organ Harvesting: Ekweremadu, wife sue NIMC, NIS, banks, others

Former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, and his wife, Beatrice, have sued the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) and others over controversy surrounding David Ukpo’s real age.

Others mentioned in the suit are the Comptroller General (C-G), Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS); Stanbic-IBTC Bank; United Bank of Africa (UBA) and Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc as 2nd to 5th respondents respectively. 

Ekweremadu and his wife were, on Tuesday, June 23, arrested by UK police for conspiracy to facilitate the travel of Ukpo, an alleged minor, for organ harvesting. They were subsequently remanded in custody till July 7.

In a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/984/2022 and filed on June 27 by Adegboyega Awomolo, the couple’s counsel, before Inyang Ekwo, justice of a federal high court in Abuja, the Ekweremadus prayed the court for an order directing the NIMC to supply them with the certified true copy (CTC) of Ukpo’s biodata.

They also sought an order directing the NIS comptroller-general to supply the applicants with Ukpo’s documents and application form presented for the issuance of his international passport.

The suit is also seeking an order directing Stanbic IBTC Bank and UBA to supply the applicants with the certified true copy of the “mandate card and account opening package of Ukpo’s bank accounts”.

“The applicants have a daughter named Sonia Ekweremadu, who is suffering from kidney failure and the applicants have been managing it for about five years. Sonia urgently needed kidney transplant to save her life and David Nwamini Ukpo offered to donate one of his kidneys if his kidney is compatible with hers. 

However, after conducting various medical tests, the Royal Free Hospital in London decided that the said David was not a suitable donor because his kidney is not compatible with that of Sonia,” Awomolo said.

According to him, Ukpo was then asked to return to Nigeria but rather than do so, he approached the authorities in the U.K for protection from being returned to Nigeria.

Ekwo fixed July 1 for hearing of the matter.