Your Excellency,
APPEAL FOR THE UNCONDITIONAL RELEASE OF MY BROTHER, UZOCHI AGBAKWURIBE, WHO WAS BRUTALISED WITH MACHETES AND DETAINED BY OFFICERS OF THE NDLEA ABOH MBAISE ZONAL COMMAND, ENYIOGUGU, FOR THE PAST 20 DAYS
I am Mr. Frank Agbakwuribe, a trader and native of Umueleri, Ogwu in Aboh Mbaise LGA of Imo State.
May I most respectfully draw the attention of His Excellency to the brutal, unlawful arrest and unjustified detention for the past 20 days of my elder brother, Mr. Uzochi Agbakwuribe by officers of the Aboh-Mbaise Zonal Command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) under the command of one Mrs Kemi.
My Brother was brutally arrested by these officers on Friday 18 October, 2019 for allegedly possessing a small quantity (150 grammes) of Indian Hemp/Cannabis.
Your Excellency, as the Chief Law Officer of the State, is fully aware that based on the combined provisions of Sections 34, 35 and 41 of the 1999 Constitution as amended and Articles 4, 5 and 6 of the African Charter of Human and People Right, my brother is entitled to bail for the alleged simple offence.
I also wish to draw the attention of His Excellency, to the fact that the unjustified brutal arrest of my brother by officers under the command of Mrs Kemi, which led to the deep mutilation of several sensitive parts of his body with machetes and other hard objects, is crude, highly unprofessional and also unlawful.
It is most unfortunate, howbeit inexplicable, that in spite of the fact that these officers were armed and greatly out-numbered my brother, his arrest ended up with deep life-threatening machete cuts all over his body. Making the arrest appear more like a case of attempted murder, rather than a mere arrest. It was expected that as experienced superior officers, Mrs Kemi and her officers, should be fully aware that the rules of engagement do not permit the use of arms and/or unreasonable force on an unarmed suspect.
I was reliably informed that when our Lawyer approached Mrs Kemi for our brother’s bail so that he can be given adequate medical attention, she declined stating that THE GOVERNOR GAVE HER STANDING ORDER TO DEAL WITH CRIMINALS AND DRUG DEALERS IN THE AREA. Although, we may not deny the fact that Your Excellency may have given such orders with the good intention of fighting crime, yet we don’t believe Your Excellency would permit the barbaric practice of butchering of suspects with machetes and or other hard objects.
We also know that Your Excellency will not support the inhuman practice of detaining a seriously wounded suspect, instead of granting him bail in order to seek adequate medical attention. Presently youths of our community are growing restive with his continual detention, inspite of his precarious health condition, induced by the deep machete cuts he recieved during his arrest. I have reached my wits end in trying to prevent a breakdown of law and order in the community.
Consequently, we humbly appeal to Your Excellency to order the immediate release of my brother, while investigation is conducted as to the veracity of the allegation against him.
A Surety is already waiting to take him on bail.
The Law is clear on this matter. A suspect is presumed innocent until proven guilty and as such, is entitled to bail and the right to decent treatment.
I am also requesting Your Excellency to order a through investigation as to the unlawful, unprofessional and brutal method of arrest applied by these officers, and sanction those found wanting. This is in the interest of justice and also would serve as a deterrent to erring officers.
This act of savagery and lawlessness by officers of the NDLEA Aboh Mbaise Zonal Command is totally against the spirit and letter of the Rebuild Imo Government, which has come to rebuild and not to destroy. The Mission of the NDLEA in Aboh Mbaise should be to maintain law and order, and not to break the law and cause disorder.
In this regard, we look forward to Your Excellency’s swift intervention in this matter before it gets out of hand.
Your Humble Subject,
Mr. Frank Agbakwuribe
08080808148
