Mercy Aigbe opens up in an exclusive video interview with Broadway TV regarding her husband Lanre Gentry’s sustained and vicious physical attacks on her person four weeks ago. Gentry has been arrested and is being held at Kirikiri prison. The incident happened four weeks ago but Aigbe continues to suffer health repercussions including bleeding from the nose.
I find it incredible that he beat her as mercilessly as he did in front of others and no one stepped in to help her until she had sustained such severe injuries?
“He beats me consistently I stayed because I loved him and because everytime he beats me, he begs and gets family and friends to beg me. He promised regularly to change but he never did. When my husband gets angry, he gets physical, not only to me but to anyone. He has done that with my house help who reported him to the Police years ago. I stayed because of my children and because a lot of people look up to me. I was a role model of some sort and I really wanted to keep it together. I just wanted a home.”
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When she walked into our office shortly after the first court hearing with her now estranged husband over alleged battering, Mercy Aigbe’s look and (demeanor) were in sharp contrast to the happy girl, vivacious and ‘slay mama’ reputation she has.
Mercy looked beaten, battered and broken. The visible black pouch under her left eye bears screeching testimony to her present struggle and tales of a survivor. Popular actor, Mike Ezuruonye who was in our office as at the time she came in couldn’t believe his ‘eyes’. It appeared he was looking at another Mercy Aigbe. A ‘Mercy’ who bore no resemblance to the queen on the screens. He kept muttering to himself, ‘whoever did this to Mercy is a monster. This is unbelievable’.
Truly, Mercy’s present state and predicament are unbelievable. Three years ago, she and estranged husband, Lanre Gentry jointly produced a video to debunk rumors of domestic violence. Mercy has consistently portrayed the image of a happily married actress. She is often referred to as an actress with ‘marriage goal’ in blogosphere.
For the uninitiated, this popular Nollywood actress, Mercy and hubby, Lanre Gentry have been in the news for the wrong reasons. Lanre has been accused of beating Mercy to a pulp and dangerous bend. According to the actress and based on medical reports we sighted, certain muscles are trapped in the orbit of her eyes and she coughed blood consistently during the near one-hour interview she reluctantly granted BROADWAY TV.
In this tear-filled interview, Mercy remains inconsolable and sad that her seven-year marriage is headed for the rocks. However, she firmly believes it is better for one to lose her marriage than gamble with the gift of life while trying to keep up appearances. Mercy Aigbe is a convert. Yes. A convert to the cause to say ‘NO’ to all forms of domestic violence in Nigeria.In her own words, she intoned,‘I thought I was going to die during the last round of beating he subjected me to.’ The traumatic experience still brings palpable fear to her eyes as she narrates the events. Not one soul in the office of BROADWAY TV was left without a tearful eye after the interview.
It was obvious after the interview that she had been doing a lot of cover-up, served us false ‘couple’s goals’ slogans for years and has a lot of sorting out to do (legal, medical and professionally.)
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Credited for several firsts in the fashion and entertainment industry, Uduak Oduok (Ms. Uduak) is a fashion and entertainment lawyer, speaker, visionary, gamechanger, trailblazer, and recognized thought leader, for her work on Africa’s emerging global fashion and entertainment markets, and the niche practice of fashion law in the United States. She is also the founder of ‘Africa Music Law,’ an industry go-to music business and law blog and podcast show empowering African artists. Her work in the creative and legal industries has earned her numerous awards and recognitions, including an award from the American University Washington College of Law for her “legal impact in the field of intellectual property in Africa." She has also taught as an Adjunct Professor at several institutions in the United States. For more information, visit her at https://msuduak.com.
