Editors’ Note: The coverage of the Chioma Okoli-ERISCO foods is a developing story. Subsequent event updates will be added as the case unfolds.
The widespread coverage of the case between Chioma Okoli and ERISCO Foods has caused severe backlash from the general public. With international news outlets like CNN reporting on the case and international chat communities sharing their opinions about it, most people stand on the side of freedom of speech.
On Reddit
A Reddit post recently discussed the case between ERISCO Foods and Chioma Okoli. Reactions from people worldwide in the Reddit thread continue to side with Chioma Okoli’s right to freedom of speech. Here’s what people had to say:
On Google
As a result of the Reddit post, people took to google to review the company. ERISCO Foods currently has 1.2 stars and 1,482 ratings on Google.
On Twitter
On Twitter, Nigerians still advocate for Chioma Okoli, hoping the case will be dropped swiftly and ERISCO Foods will stop the chaos.
The backstory
Earlier this month, ERISCO Foods, with the help of the Nigerian Police, initiated a legal battle seeking three years imprisonment or N5 billion in damages by invoking Section 24 of the Cybercrime Act 2015. So far, there has been no update about the case, as it will be heard on May 20, 2024.
In the CNN report, Chioma detailed her experience, stating that she was kept in a leaky cell at 6 p.m. on September 24, 2023. Pregnant with her fourth child, she was forced to stand all through the night in the cell as no chair was provided for her.
“Sometimes, I squatted to reduce the pressure on my legs. I was thinking about my children who were at home. I was talking to myself. I would think, I would pray, I was messed up,” she said, as reported by CNN.
According to Inibehe Effiong, Chioma Okoli’s lawyer, her arrest breaches her constitutional right to freedom of expression. As a result, a countersuit has been filed against ERISCO Foods and the Nigerian Police.
Despite public opinion and the ongoing boycotting of ERISCO products, the company’s CEO refuses to budge, saying,
“I would rather die than let someone tarnish the image I spent 40 years building.”
More updates will be added to this article as events unfold.
