An Aba-based medical practitioner, Dr. Chinyere Chukwuemeka Okwuonu of Isaac Okwuonu Memorial Hospital, Ogbor- Hill, Aba has petitioned the Inspector- General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar over what he described as an” attempt to kill him through continued armed siege, harassment, intimidation, arrest, detention and destruction of his hospital/NGO social home by police from office of the Commissioner of Police, Abia State and State Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
Okwuonu, in the petition written by his counsel, Barr. Casmir Elele said that since October 2007 to this day that officers of the Nigerian Police Force from the Commissioner of Police and Assistant Commissioner State CID, Umuahia have unleashed a regime of terror, harassment and intimidation, arrest, detention, dehumanization, extortion on him, his hospital and NGO without just cause.
Part of the petition reads:” When these intimidatory acts became unbearable, our client initiated an action in 2007 in Suit No. HOB/272M/2007: Dr. Okwuonu vs. Sgt. Ogbuo & ors. The court in its judgment of 8/10/2008 condemned the conduct of these officers and restrained the police from further invasion of our client’s hospital, social home as well as further breach of his fundamental rights on spurious allegations of child trafficking.
According to the petition, Okwuonu’s hospital, NGO and social home called (Mother Ijato Family Care Trust) were registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission with the objects of preventive and care services for victims of unwanted pregnancy, protection of children without families and orphans rehabilitation.
Other objects are: empowerment of victims of unwanted pregnancy/ social mothers and vulnerable children through economic, social and religious programmes, and skills acquisition in various areas of life and the support of the social mothers.
The petition further reads that” despite the said judgment, officers from the office of the Commissioner of Police, Abia State and the State CID, Umuahia, using all the units of the Police Force at their disposal have continued to harass and arrest Okwuonu, the social mothers and their children, adding” specifically on 8/42013, officers from Nigeria Police Station, Eziama, Aba, invaded our client’s hospital and NGO social home, arrested him and about 15 of the social mothers and their babies and detained them for 2 days (8/4/2013-10/4/20130 until they forcibly extorted very huge sum of money from him”.
The petition also noted that Okwuonu has been arrested by the police without just cause for more than six times this year despite the pending matter between Okwuonu and the Police in Suit No. A/M 91/2013 and an extant order restraining the police from continued arrest harassment, intimidation and detention of Okwuonu. It added that Okwuonu’s hospital and social home been invaded and broken by the police over ten times.” In all these phantom allegations no prima facie case has been established against our client to warrant any charge in court. Yet, the Police in Abia State have refused to allow him any respite for no other reason than very obvious venal purposes.”
“Besides, the judgment of 2008 is known to the police, valid and subsisting to this day. The Abia Police Command by their actions have so far displayed high- handedness and contempt towards the proceedings in these cases contrary to their role under the constitution and Police Act. Our client verily believes that the office of the Commissioner of Police and all police units in Abia are after his life and are under clear instruction to kill him without cause.
“ It is therefore our final instruction to send this SOS appeal and petition to you sir to use your good offices to URGENTLY intervene to SAVE the life, soul and liberty of our client, his wife, family, hospital, NGO social home, the social mothers, his staff, among others from the hands of Abia Police Command. Our client’s staff and patients arrested since Monday are still in unlawful detention at the Police Headquarters, Umuahia without just cause. We also urge you to ensure their release,” the petition reads.
It will be recalled that the Commissioner of police, Abia Sate Command, Mr. Usman Tilli Ababakar, paraded some pregnant girls and others before newsmen in Umuahia last week, which he claimed were rounded up at Isaac Okwonu’s Hospital and Maternity home situated at Ikot Ekpene Road, Ogbor Hill, Aba between September 17 and 18.
He alleged that the owner of the hospital, Dr Chinyere Chukwuemeka Okwuonu , engaged the young pregnant girls and continued to hide them till they were delivered of their babies whom he would sell and give the under-aged innocent girls some meager amount between N10,000 and N15,000 depending on the sex of the babies. He stated that one of such girls, Gift Lawrence from Item in Bende LGA delivered a baby girl on September 4, and up till the time of her arrest.
Reacting to the Commissioner of Police’s claims, counsel to Dr. Okwuonu, Barr. Casmir Elele told newsmen in Aba that they were in court on that Monday and that his junior was in Police Headquarters to secure the release of the social mothers and nurses who were arrested.
Elele said that his junior drew attention of Nze Desmond (a policemen who led the team that raided Okwuonu’s hospital) that he was sued on record alongside nine other respondents, adding that it was the same facts that they went to court and the court restrained them from arresting and detaining this people that they came back during the pendency in court which came on the same Monday and the police lawyer was physically in court.
According to Elele, Nze Desmond feigned ignorant of the suit and was given a copy, after which he said he was going to discuss the matter with the Commissioner of Police and see a way of releasing the social mothers and the nurses, and that the next thing the Commissioner of Police did was to organise a press conference where he claimed that Dr. Okwuonu was at large.
