Private Ruth Ogunleye, a former soldier dismissed from the Nigerian Army after accusing a senior officer, Colonel I.B. Abdulkareem, of sexual harassment, has publicly urged the military to release the findings of its investigation into her case. Ogunleye, who was discharged on June 15, 2024, continues to press for transparency regarding the circumstances surrounding her dismissal, which she claims was unjust.
Ogunleye’s allegations first surfaced in January 2024, when she took to TikTok under the handle @Ogunleyeruthsavage1. In a series of posts, she accused Colonel Abdulkareem of repeated attempts to sexually abuse her, providing unauthorized injections, forcibly removing her from her home, and detaining her in a psychiatric ward after she resisted his advances. She also mentioned that Colonels G.S. Ogor and Brigadier General I.B. Solebo played roles in making her life unbearable.
Despite these accusations, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu, the Director of Army Public Relations, addressed the issue in a media briefing. He revealed that after an extensive inquiry, which included a detailed review of testimony, facts, and evidence, it was concluded that Colonel Abdulkareem had not committed the offenses Ogunleye had alleged. Nwachukwu further stated that medical evaluations from the National Hospital in Abuja revealed that Ogunleye suffered from a condition that made her medically fragile, which played a role in her dismissal.
In response, Ogunleye posted a video on her TikTok account expressing her gratitude towards the Nigerian Army but also demanded that the military make the findings of its investigation public. She called for transparency, saying, “I humbly request that the Nigerian Army publish the outcome of the investigation that led to my discharge. I beg the Nigerian Army to post the outcome of the investigation on its social media platforms so that the whole world will know what truly transpired.”
Ogunleye’s frustration goes beyond her allegations against Abdulkareem. She has called on Nigeria’s Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy, to clarify her role in the events leading to her discharge. Ogunleye alleges that it was the minister who persuaded her to submit a voluntary resignation letter to the Army, which Kennedy then forwarded on her behalf.
Ogunleye expressed confusion and disbelief when she learned that her discharge was classified as medical due to mental health reasons, claiming, “I’m calling out the Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy. You’re not just a mother, you’re a woman everybody respects so much. Please come out and say things as they are. Ma, you requested me to leave the job, and I submitted my handwritten voluntary resignation letter to you, which you gave to the Army, and requested that they release me to your office.”
She went on to explain that during a subsequent conversation with the Chief of Army Staff on July 1, 2024, she was informed that her voluntary discharge had been converted to a medical discharge so she could benefit from pension and other entitlements. Ogunleye questioned the reasoning behind this decision, asking, “How was I boarded out, and where is this mental illness coming from?”
