Ruth’s Death: Phyna’s N135bn Demand and Dangote Cement PLC’s Silence – The Back Story!

August 13th, at the heart of Benin, the hapless accident happened. Ruth Otabor, a mother of two, who had graduated from the Auchi polytechnic six days earlier, fell to tragic fate.

A truck belonging to the Dangote Cement PLC crushed her at a spot where she engaged a bike man in an altercation, and she suffered fatal harm that tortured her till her death, on August 31st.

Before the anxious public gathered at the scene, the driver had fled and remained at large.

A sympathetic few from the crowd helped Daniel, Ruth’s acclaimed husband and father of one of her children, to rush the unconscious Ruth to the hospital, where she was admitted for immediate care.

Typical of social media trends, the news caught steam in quick minutes and spread at savage speed.

Although Ruth was known, especially in Auchi Poly, where she schooled, two big names built the clout that quickly consumed the saga – Phyna, Ex-BBNaija winner and Dangote, Africa’s Richest Man.

And what followed was a rush of rash reactions. The public rode along the trend, which bore a blend of genuine truths and guileful rumours.

But, I decided to dig deeply into the truths of the drama that played out behind the scenes. And what I found was a turn-up for the books.

Auchi Polytechnic and its environs erupted in perfervid outrage. But their rage merely smouldered until VeryDarkMan (VDM) visited the location and lit the flame.

As is his style, picking self-soothing truths from a single lens and seizing the stage for self-glorification, VDM pulled the angry Auchi Polytechnic students and youths into his crass clout-show, blocking the federal road against vehicular movement.

He left Auchi an accidental, altruistic hero, ending an episode of the distressing drama.

Dangote Cement PLC, owners of the truck, and the employees of the irresponsible driver, had sent a team from their Risk Assessment Unit to visit Ruth at the hospital and assess the damage.

At the hospital, they met Daniel and the victim’s family and pledged to cater to Ruth’s medical and well-being, in its entirety. Their presence, though secret, was assuring. Both parties cooperated for immediate takeoff.

First, they footed Ruth’s medical bills at Auchi, provided a Land Ambulance to transport her to Benin, where she remained in intensive care.

Second, they transported her to the Lagoon Hospital, in Lagos state, a more standard, specialist hospital, for intensive care, to regain consciousness and stability.

At this juncture, Phyna took charge of the process, shutting off Daniel and other family members, and solely interfacing with Dangote PLC, for reasons I can’t assure.

I learnt that Dangote Cement PLC gave her a N5 million instant cash gift to travel to Benin to see Ruth before she was airlifted to the Lagoon Hospital. The company catered to the entire expense incurred in airlifting Ruth to Lagos, too.

What is surprisingly striking is that Dangote Cement PLC management, apart from the two-piece statements they released, stayed silent and treaded secretly in the entire process.

Although, I would learn, much later, that it was the company’s internal decision, which stemmed from their ethical protocol of not disclosing interventions they give victims of risks.

A few days later, Phyna held a meeting with Dangote Cement PLC. It was a long meeting, which ended with bargains that soothed both parties.

Dangote’s team reassured their readiness to foot Ruth’s bills, including her leg amputation, and flying her to India for advanced medical care, when her doctors, at Lagoon hospital certify.

But in an abrupt, stunning turn of events, Phyna, perhaps to get Dangote Cement PLC to commit legally to the agreements, engaged her lawyers, without prior notice, and sent a list of demands with items tripled. Not just a few of them were outrageous and insensitive.

Part of her demands included that Dangote Cement PLC must pay her family $90m (over ₦138bn), in the event of suboptimal occurrence (that is, if Ruth dies).

An unconditional ₦10bn payment for permanent disability to Ruth, upkeep of her children & family impact. Another ₦6m monthly allowance for life, reviewed every 2 years in line with US Dollars rate.

These demands sparked a strong curiosity in me and I wondered, why is Phyna making bargains over her sister’s death, while she breathed? Was it that she knew Ruth wouldn’t survive? Why did she shut off Ruth’s husband and other family members from the process?

And, very importantly, why was she more concerned about getting Dangote Cement PLC to commit to monetary rewards over her sister’s survival and health?

Interestingly, I learnt that, in an initial agreement, Phyna requested Dangote Cement PLC not to involve lawyers, but she later did.

Also, she asked the company not to engage the social media or post details about the incidents, but she regularly shared updates on social media. One may assume, she did for clout and public pity.

In the entire process, one can best fault Dangote Cement PLC’s naivety, especially the seeming nonchalance of the management to engage the public periodically. Their bureaucratic fault has caused the company to face the attack it received in the entire process.

Why so, their silence on or delayed responses to critical issues often leave the public with misinformation and stir misguided reactions.

For instance, the Omega Fire Ministry incident, alleged to have been caused by the company’s truck was a rumoured lie. Pastor Suleiman apologized to them but didn’t make it public.

It is good that they have remained strongly committed to bearing the burden of the Ruth. Unfortunately, Ruth’s life has been cut short by the recklessness of one of the company’s drivers.

I would use #JusticeForRuth, to call on both parties, Ruth’s family and Dangote Cement PLC, to engage with deep empathy, particularly for Ruth’s children, not entirely for Phyna.

Also, Dangote Cement PLC needs to show a serious commitment to engaging with the public about their transportation system, particularly their driver recruitment processes, training, and sanctions for erring drivers. A documentary on this wouldn’t be a bad idea.

We hope not to have another Ruth incident, at least in the near future.