Tracyniter (Tracy) Nicholas Ohiri, a businesswoman who
previously accused David Umahi, minister of works, of sexual harassment and
unpaid campaign-related debt, has alleged that she was coerced into retracting
her claims and promised payment that was never fulfilled.
In a new video, Ohiri claimed that a lawyer, Marshal
Abubakar, pressured her to record the retraction and conveyed that Umahi had
agreed to compensate her.
She, however, alleged that the money was not paid before the
video was released, contrary to what she said was the agreement.
“Marshal, you gave me a script… you forced me to do this
video,” she said.
“You said the person told you he was willing to pay me and compensate me for even
arresting me and body-shaming me in public… You told
me that I will receive my payment before you release the video.”
Ohiri repeatedly demanded payment in the video, questioning
why the footage was made public before she received any money.
“How did you release the video without me collecting my
money?” Ohiri asked.
She also alleged that Abubakar threatened and prevented her
from speaking to others about the matter.
“You made sure I did not speak to anybody… you kept on
threatening me,” the businesswoman said.
She called on the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to
investigate the lawyer’s conduct, describing it as unethical.
Ohiri also posted secretly recorded phone conversations she
had with the lawyer.
The claims have not been independently verified.
BACKGROUND
Ohiri had alleged that Umahi owed her about N250 million for
promotional and printing services she provided during his 2015 governorship
campaign in Ebonyi state.
According to her, repeated demands for payment were met with
alleged advances from the minister, which she said she rejected.
She further alleged that after rejecting the advances, the
situation escalated, with threats and eventual police action against her.
Ohiri was arrested in Lagos on allegations of cyberbullying
linked to her social media posts about the dispute and subsequently transferred
to Abuja, where she was detained at the FCT police command.
She was later arraigned before a magistrate court in Wuse,
Abuja, on a defamation charge and granted bail.
The case drew public attention after Omoyele Sowore,
activist and former presidential candidate confronted Umahi at the police
headquarters, criticising what he described as the criminalisation of a civil
dispute.
UMAHI’S RESPONSE
Umahi had denied both the allegation of indebtedness and
claims of sexual harassment.
In a video response, the minister described the claims as
baseless and said his record in public office should speak for him.
“As party chairman, I owed nobody… I presided over both men
and women, and nobody ever said I harassed them,” he said.
The minister dismissed the controversy as social media
noise.
“What you read on social media, I’m not worried about it…
it’s just to make social media alive,” he added.
RETRACTION
Amid the controversy, Ohiri released a video retracting her
earlier allegations and apologising to the minister and his family.
She said her decision followed consultations with her
family, friends, and legal team.
In the retraction, Ohiri walked back key elements of her
claims, including the allegation that Umahi made threats referencing past
incidents.
On the financial dispute, she stated that there was no
formally signed agreement between her and the minister, suggesting that any
materials she delivered may have been used by aides without his knowledge.
However, her latest video challenges that retraction,
alleging that it was scripted and made under pressure, with a promise of
payment that was not fulfilled.
She also claimed to have recordings of conversations and
said she would release them.
ABUBAKAR’S RESPONSE
Responding to the allegations on his Facebook page, Abubakar
denied coercing Ohiri or withholding any payment, describing her claims as
false.
Abubakar said he was among those who mobilised support for
Ohiri during her arrest, including engaging activists and facilitating her
bail.
Abubakar said efforts were made to mediate between Ohiri and
Umahi, but the minister maintained that he was not indebted to her and would
only pay if a court established the existence of a contract.
“He insisted that he wasn’t owing her and wouldn’t pay
unless she can establish the existence of a contract,” he said.
According to him, during the mediation process, he found no
evidence to support Ohiri’s claims of a contractual agreement or delivery of
services to the minister.
“There was no single real evidence of any contractual
agreement… no evidence that the minister ever engaged her,” he said.
He added that Ohiri eventually agreed to retract her
allegations as part of efforts to resolve the dispute.
Abubakar said a sum of $70,000 was provided by a third
party, Joseph Ekumankama, not as compensation or admission of liability, but to
facilitate peace.
He denied personally benefiting financially from the process
and alleged that Ohiri later demanded a much higher sum.
“She promised to drag my name online unless I… pay her N300
million,” he said.
Abubakar added that he is considering legal action over the
allegations made against him.
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com