Ogbaku area of the Owerri-Onitsha express way has become an axis of evil occasioned by the alleged questionable activities of Nigerian policemen stationed there.
Beyond the brazen extortion that goes on at literally every police roadblock in Imo state, the policemen at Ogbaku has introduced a dangerous twist to their operation.
They allegedly harass parents travelling with their little kids, intimidate and deploy the instrument of fear for the sole purposes of exploiting the fear-stricken passengers.
A passenger who craved anonymity told our correspondent that, “On two occasions I have witnessed their lawlessness while travelling through that road. They accuse the parent of not being the father or mother of the child or children and they do not give you opportunity to prove that you are the parent of the child. They force you down from the vehicle and order the driver to move or face the consequences.
“They threaten and frighten these parents so much, that they part with whatever they demand because they are not interested in taking you to the police station. Most times, the high-paying victims are parents travelling to Lagos, Onitsha or any other distant place. And those victims who are not resident in the city but passengers merely travelling through Owerri. They take away their phones and can hold them until evening; and for fear of what may happen to them at night, these poor victims pay up and buy their freedom.”
“They threaten and frighten these parents so much, that they part with whatever they demand because they are not interested in taking you to the police station. Most times, the high-paying victims are parents travelling to Lagos, Onitsha or any other distant place. And those victims who are not resident in the city but passengers merely travelling through Owerri. They take away their phones and can hold them until evening; and for fear of what may happen to them at night, these poor victims pay up and buy their freedom.”
Just yesterday, Wednesday, the 13th of November 2019, a passenger who experienced these rampaging policemen on duty poured out her outrage on her Facebook page.
The lady whose page name read Ijeoma J. wrote: “I am in a bus travelling from Owerri to Onitsha right now. Goodness and Mercy Mass Transit number plate GDD- 781ZE. Bus number 0103.
A group of policemen stopped the bus I boarded. They accused a co-passenger of not being the mother of the boy (about 6years old) that was with her.
“The policemen refused to allow her to prove she is the mother and beat up one of the other passengers that tried to intervene on her behalf. They forced the woman and child to disembark and ordered the bus to proceed at gunpoint.
“I am worried about what they will do to the woman and child. I understand that the police is trying to curb child trafficking but these set are violent and went too far.
“One of the policemen is named Ubaka Martins number 377139. The location is Ikpa Ogbaku on Owerri road. Please share widely.”
When our correspondent visited the area in Ogbaku, a local who craved anonymity said she had once witnessed a heart-breaking episode where policemen on the same axis forced a couple travelling to Lagos with their 5 year old boy to disembark from the bus and ordered the bus to proceed without them. They accused the couple of not being the parents of the little boy, without any scientific proof except the force of arm. they held the parents, seized their mobile phones until they agreed to make cash transfer to an account provided by the policemen.
“Immediately the couple made the cash transfer, the policemen left the road. When the parents and their kid returned to the road to look for a vehicle, we asked them how they fared with the policemen and they said they had to pay. They were not residents of Owerri and could not call anybody because they had their phones. They had their kid with them and would not want to risk the night with the policemen. They gave them their phones when they agreed to make a cash transfer of N120,000. The wife of the man had said she dreaded SARS and thought the men were SARS operatives with their mufti attire and had encouraged her husband to do whatever he could to free them as it was getting late”, the local recalled.
To say the least, police extortion is fast becoming an accepted norm in Imo state.The police high command, the state government and even the citizens are fast surrendering to the rampaging criminality of policemen on road duty.
From Okigwe road to Ugwu Orji; from IMSU Back Gate to MCC road; from Eileen Sirleaf road to Onitsha road, From Akwakuma to Ohi junction and from PortHarcourt road to Avu junction, the story is the same – brazen extortion – encouraged by the system and given validity by the seeming silence of the state government. Sadly, the residents of Imo state bear the weight and the brunt of these acts of impunity.
