By Chuks Eke
The Campaign for Democracy, CD, Anambra state chapter, one of the Civil Society Organizations, CSOs in the country has decried what it termed a high level of extortion of motorists along the highways in various parts of the state.
CD lamented that the level of extortion prevalent in the state has become too inexplicable that the attention of the Chief of Army Staff, COAS; Chief of Naval Staff, the Inspector-General of Police and IGP the Corps Marshal of the Federation should intervene urgently and call their men to order in order to bring back sanity on our highways.
Chairman of CD in Anambra state, Comrade Ekene Nnadi who raised the alarm during their quarterly meeting in Onitsha, said each motorists spend an average of N2,000 from Onitsha to Owerri at various checkpoints mounted by both the Army, the Navy, the Police and the Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC officials.
He contended that no fewer than a total of N1 million are being extorted from the motorists on daily basis by security forces, adding that more worrisome is that fact that the soldiers and naval ratings, in order to pave the way for them to extort drivers, usually order all the passengers on board the vehicles, both the young and elderly ones to disembark and walk across their checkpoints which is usually a kilometer distance or more before re-entering their vehicles.
Nnadi also contended that it was on this process that a pregnant woman recently plunged into a side drainage and sustained grievous injury in a military checkpoint at Mgbidi in Imo state along the Onitsha/Owerri federal highway as she was trying to walk across the checkpoint mounted by the military men.
He mentioned some of the places where the checkpoints are mounted along the federal highways to include Awkuzu junction along Enugu/Onitsha federal highway (Navy), Enamelware along Onitsha/Owerri federal highway (Navy), Odekpe along Onitsha/Atani road (Navy), Mgbidi (Army), Oraifite along Onitsha/Owerri federal highway (Police from Oraifite Division and Obodoukwu road in front of Okpoko Police Station (Policemen from Okpoko Division),.
He added that in case of the Obodoukwu road checkpoint, any motorist who refused to be extorted, would not be allowed to pass through the straight road but would be ordered by the policemen to pass through an interior road.
He however commended the newly posted Commissioner of Police in Anambra state, Aderemi Adeoye for his recent footstep in redeploying the Divisional Police Officer, DPO at ‘B’ Division in Awka over alleged extortion, adding that Adeoye’s prompt action is an indication that he is not in support of the police extortion in the state and urged him to sustain the tempo by looking into the extortion complaints against the Oraifite and Okpoko Police Divisions.
According to the state CD chieftain, “we want to welcome the new CP to Anambra state and at the same time commend him for the bold step he has so far taken to discourage his men from incessant extortion and we urge him to sustain the tempo because good name is better than silver and gold”.
“In as much as we in the civil society circle believe that mounting road blocks by the security forces could contribute towards curtailing the excesses of unknown gunmen, armed robbers, kidnappers and other violent criminals, we abhor the extortion aspect of the road block”, said Nnadi.
