The daughter of a former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, Sonia, has expressed guilt over the sentencing of her parents for attempted organ harvesting in the UK.
The former Deputy President of the Nigerian Senate, Ekweremadu, was sentenced to nine years, eight months imprisonments by a UK Court on Friday.
The Old Bailey, London’s Central Criminal Court also handed a 4 years, 6 months jail term to the Senator’s wife, Beatrice
Their middleman, medical doctor, Obinna Obeta will be in prison for 10 years in the judgement was delivered by the judge. Mr Justice Jeremy Johnson.
Ekweremadu, 60, his wife, Beatrice, 56 and Obeta, 51, were convicted of conspiracy to arrange the travel of a young man, addressed as David Nwamini to Britain in order to exploit him for his kidney, which was needed for the lawmaker’s sick daughter, Sonia.
After a six-week trial and conviction at the Old Bailey, London’s Central Criminal Court, the Ekweremadus and their doctor were found guilty of violating the Modern Slavery Act.
Sonia told the BBC shortly deny after the court judgement on Friday, she felt bad and indeed guilty that the misfortunes of her parents emanated because of her.
Fighting back tears, she said she doesn’t think things would remain the same again with the judgment.
“I don’t think it will ever be the same again. And obviously, I feel guilty because I feel like all these have happened because of me,” she said
Sonia stated further that her parents her calm and ‘neutral’ from her observation of them after the judgment.
“They are quite calm, surprisingly. But I can’t really speak about what they are feeling. This is just from an outside perspective of me seeing them. They are okay, they are just neutral,”
She bemoaned the medical situation around her that led to the sentencing of her parents in the UK
“Life is just some dynamic. Like you’re one day in your house chilling and the next day your whole life is turned around, upside down.
“It’s sad. It’s been really hard to wrap my head around it. I understand the conviction. Personally, I disagree with it; however, that’s from a very biased perspective as their daughter, and I would obviously back my parents.
“However, the law has taken its course, and we just have to now move forward as a family.”
