Nollywood actress, Stephanie Okereke-Linus has reacted to the recent allegation of rape levelled against her brother, Daniel Okereke, by a 300-Level student of the University of Lagos.
According to reports, the alleged victim, identified simply as Arinola, is accusing Daniel, a 37-year old, of having raped her at his residence in Maryland, Lagos on November 6, 2014.
The actress, who has spent the bulk of her career advocating and fighting that women around the world be able to live free of violence, sexual harassment or any form of abuse, said: ‘It is indeed heart breaking for me to receive and deal with news alleging a family member of mine (my brother) is an alleged perpetrator of sexual violence against a woman. I am devastated.’
‘This case is now in Nigeria’s criminal justice system as the accused awaits arraignment. I have also encouraged and assured the alleged victim of my stance against rape and applaud her for her bravery to upset the culture of silence, in Nigeria; even as I accord deference and patiently wait for the criminal justice system to determine the guilt or innocence of my brother.’
She urged the Nigerian media to please report the case ethically and objectively instead of picking on her because she’s famous and related to the accused. ‘Some members of the press and blogs have turned me into the accuser; using my name for sensational headlines and putting my images, exclusively, in their stories. This is a form of victimisation of me as a woman; it’s unethical and extremely hurtful. I am not the alleged accused. I therefore please ask all bloggers and the media who have placed my pictures and name to this story to refrain from further using me to sensationalise this story,’ she concluded.
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