The Anambra State Government disclosed on Sunday that it would take the necessary action to address the fight and alleged “strangulation” that occurred between the Permanent Secretary of the state Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Mrs Chinwe Achugbu, and one of the ministry’s Heads of Department, a female, whose identity had yet to be determined.
Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, the Anambra state governor, recently nominated Achugbu as one of his new permanent secretaries.
It was gathered on Sunday that the fight between the two occurred on Thursday, August 15, in the office after a dispute about an unspecified topic, resulting in one of them strangling the other into a coma.
Although the cause of the fight is yet to be fully determined, reports indicate that it needed the intervention of other people around the ministry to separate the two individuals before normalcy returned to the ministry.
On Friday, a reliable ministry source, who requested anonymity, revealed the development to journalists, alleging that the permanent secretary inflicted severe injuries on the HOD, to the point where she was immediately rushed to the Emergency Ward of the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Teaching Hospital Amaku-Awka, Anambra state before being resuscitated.
It was gathered that physical assaults had become a recurring act among top staff members in the ministry, while subordinates were afraid of reporting the excesses for fear of being victimised.
The source said, “Yes, the incident happened. Everything in that story happened. I was there that day, and everything happened before my face. The two of them fought over a yet-to-be-disclosed matter, and the PS tried to strangle the HOD as she held her neck for several minutes.
“It was a very chaotic moment. It took the intervention of other persons around before normalcy returned after the HOD was rushed to the hospital because she fell into a coma.”
Another source and employee in the ministry verified the situation incident on the condition of anonymity, adding that the matter had not been officially reported to the proper authorities due to the stature of the individuals involved.
According to him, several top ministry officials were attempting to cover up the situation.
However, when reached at her office at the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Dora Akunyili Women Development Centre, Awka, Anambra state, for her reaction to the charges, the Permanent Secretary failed to answer, claiming that she was banned to talk as a person in authority. She then instructed the reporter to “go and ask the Head of Service.”
Igwegbe pledged to take action once the investigation and findings were complete.
“I saw the report on social media on Friday, August 23, 2024. I have not received a formal report against the Permanent Secretary in question as provided by Section 7, Chapter 10 of the Public Service Rules (2021).
“That notwithstanding, I have started asking questions to ascertain what happened while I await a formal report, which should be the beginning of a process. Thank you,” she added.
“That notwithstanding, I have started asking questions to ascertain what happened while I await a formal report, which should be the beginning of a process. Thank you,” she added.
Meanwhile, Ify Obinabo, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare, could not be reached for comment on the development due to unanswered messages and phone calls.
Section 7 of the Public Service Rules (2021) covers fines for erring workers and misconduct, recommendations for worker conduct, and penalties for failing to fulfil functions in accordance with established practice.
These penalties are intended to ensure that public officials maintain a high level of conduct and performance in their roles.
