Precious Chikwendu, the estranged wife of a former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, has slammed those blaming the late soulful gospel singer, Osinachi Nwachukwu, for not speaking up whilst she was allegedly assaulted by her husband, Peter Nwachukwu.
In a post on her verified Facebook page on Thursday night, the former beauty queen said the apostles of patriarchy would have shamed and silenced the late 42-year-old singer had she raised the alarm that she was being physically abused by her partner.
Chikwendu also released photos showing her bloodied nose, legs and other parts of her body as evidence of the abuse allegedly suffered whilst she co-habited with the ex-minister.
The 32-year-old mother of four, who had accused Fani-Kayode of brutalising her whilst she was staying with him, added that some wife-batterers, buoyed by societal applause, “walked free and even contested to be president in the next election.”
Of late, the ex-minister and member of the All Progressives Congress, who is facing money laundering charges with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, has been seen campaigning for Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, to become Nigeria’s President in 2023.
Also, for over a week since the death of Osinachi and the outrage trailing the distasteful circumstances that surrounded her passing, Fani-Kayode has not condemned domestic violence on his social media accounts.
Colleagues of Osinachi, who was a lead singer at the Dunamis International Headquarters, Abuja, accused her husband of beating her while the church said it was not aware of the assault.
However, Minister of Women Affairs, Pauline Tallen, said the children of the deceased told her during a visit to their Abuja residence that their father was in a habit of battering their mother.
The minister also said that Peter was married to another woman while Osinachi was alive.
Peter has since been arrested by the Federal Capital Territory Police Command over the death of his wife.
Reacting to Osinachi’s death in the Facebook post, Chikwendu wrote:
I’ve been silently reading so much of the blame people are heaping on Osinachi for not speaking up. Sweethearts you can’t understand the weight on a victim of domestic violence or how we go through so much compartmentalizing how the world would look at us, close friends waiting to laugh at us, those who would say we warned you, how our family members would humiliate us of putting them to shame if we do leave, how we would be irrelevant in places where we were deemed relevant by the status of marriage or maintaining a home.
You all forget that a narcissistic partner is one who feels threatened by the abilities or potential of their partner and I’ve said this to so many women and men I’ve had a chance to speak with after eating enough of this breakfast, That if he or she is intimidated by your personality, achievements, charisma, Strength or God-given talent, sweetheart run for your life.
Envy mixed with a slice of hate is violence-prone when it has to do with partners or lovers. If he or she can’t learn to talk over arguments without turning a red-eye on you, screaming at you which gradually graduates to punches, the absolute need to intimidate or silence you on every unintended provocation, the adrenaline rush when they exert authority or control, RUN.
These behaviours are the first azonto steps of abuse. The judges would have called her a prostitute or mad like I was called for choosing my sanity and peace. Her husband would have left to pick another supply, walked free and even contested to be president in the next election.
Every abusive partner was exposed to violence at some point life and would pass this on. We are screaming about Osinachi, she is gone and it hurts to see a victim like me not survive but I totally understand she got to the stage where she resigned her fate to die in torture she felt there is no other way out.
I got to that stage but snapped out of it after realizing that when I’m gone my boys would hate me for such a selfish decision without considering them. So many people were aware of my situation but never spoke likewise Osinachi’s case because everyone would still blame her regardless.
Blaming a victim in constant fear is why most would not speak up as so many are reading these negative contributions. Osinachi would have walked away if she had just a bit of her self esteem intact, she let go cos she felt worthless.
Chikwendu has been separated from Fani-Kayode since 2021 over sundry allegations including domestic violence and she has been demanding the custody of her four kids in the case before a Customary Court of the Federal Capital Territory.
