- Safiu Kehinde
Ovat Agbor, a member of the Cross River State House of Assembly, has been suspended indefinitely following assault on his wife over alleged infidelity.
The lawmaker, representing Obubra I State Constituency, had on Thursday come under public spotlight after a video of his heavily brutalised wife surfaced online.
As captured in the video shared on X, both eyes of the woman were heavily swollen on account of the assault with Ovat allegedly refusing to give her money for medical treatment.
One of the women who recorded the video disclosed that the lawmaker had constantly abused his wife with the Assembly Speaker intervening on his marital affairs on several occasions.
This had sparked public outrage as netizens demanded justice for the mother of four.
In reaction, the Cross Rivers Assembly ordered Ovat suspension following intervention by the state governor, Bassey Otu, who was said to have openly rebuked the lawmaker over the alleged abuse.
According to sources familiar with the situation, the altercation occurred last Saturday after a disagreement between Ovat and his wife during a gathering at the Assembly quarters in Calabar.
Witnesses said the confrontation reportedly began after the lawmaker accused his wife of excessive drinking and maintaining inappropriate relationships with other men.
This was said to have intensified after the couple returned to their residence later that evening with a source alleging that the dispute escalated into violence.