By Joshua Chibuzo Andrew, Owerri
Residents of Imo state have condemned in its entirety the continued intimidation, harassment and extortion of money by men of Imo state police force.
They have called on the government of Imo state and the Commissioner of Police to wade into the issue and proffer immediate solution to it before it degenerates to an intractable situation.
The development, they argued, had created serious fear among the drivers, commuters, travelers and pedestrians, who ply some major roads in the state.
Residents who spoke to our reporter on Monday said the policemen on stop and search duty along Imo major roads are intimidating unsuspecting members of the public with their guns and extorting huge sums of money from them.
A motorcycle parts sellers along Owerri-Okigwe road who spoke to 247ureports.com said bulk of the gory scenes of police brutality in the state happen in his presence on a daily basis.
He said there is no more sanity in policing especially when almost all the policemen on stop and search duty are into extortion and other criminal activities.
The motorcycle parts dealer who pleaded anonymity said, “what i see each day on this road is annoying. Police work which ought to be the protection of lives and property, is no longer so. What they now do is to extort huge sums of money from innocent civilians.
“They no longer have time to check driver’s booth, licence and other important security flashpoints. Once money is given to them, they will allow you go. This is absolutely wrong.”
A passenger traveling from Enugu state to Owerri has this to say, “It is very obvious that Imo police are not yet ready to get rid of the menace soiling the image of the Force. It was on this road a week ago that a young man returning to Owerri to resume school was forced to transfer 100k to a certain account by the policemen, after they had beaten him blue back. Just from Enugu to Owerri, the young guy transfered more than a #150,000 to operation search and flush and other police team on the road.
“They accused the poor boy of being a yahoo guy because of his dreads and dressing. This has to stop. Imo government and the Commissioner of Police should do something urgent to stop this.”
Another resident in Owerri, the Imo state capital who also spoke in the condition of anonymity, challenged the state police force to publish at least one or two cyber crime offenders they had uncovered since the new onslaught on searching people’s cellphones and brutalizing them.
He said, “their actions are only targeted on extortion of money and collection of ‘roger’. Two days ago, they extorted someone of 200,000 naira at a POS centre near the state command.
“Sadly, the command and its control mechanism in the Imo Police Command is quite loose. So many people are laws unto themselves! This is most unfortunate.”
A journalist in the state also vented his anger on the several press releases from the command against the illegal extortion of individuals by operatives of the command.
Hear him, “the Commissioner of Police cannot put a permanent stop to this issue by writing series of press releases. He should rather organize a security workshop/seminar to educate the police personnel on the rudiments of policing who may have had prior intents of extortion before venturing into Nigeria Police Force. These bad eggs are giving the command bad name.”
He continued, “We want to see these officers arrested, paraded before newsmen and prosecuted, it has happened in some states. Rather than keeping silent over this brazen extortion, the command can set up monitoring team that will check the operations of these dissident policemen.”
The Imo state Police Spokesman, ASP Henry Okoye, who confirmed the news via a press release, had this to say, ”
Sequel to a series of complaints received from members of the public, especially from the youth alleging indiscriminate harassment and illegal checking of their phones, palmtop, and laptop and extortion by Police Officers and in the process embarrassing the Command, the Commissioner of Police, CP Mohammed Ahmed Barde, has warned Police Officers posted on patrol and guard duties who are in the habit of harassing members of the public and checking their phones to desist forthwith as appropriate disciplinary sanctions will be meted against any erring officer.
“The Commissioner directs that officers and men of the command should be professional, uphold the rule of law, protect the rights of all citizens, and exercise their lawful duties to the general public without exhibiting any form of vindictiveness.
“He Commends Imolites for their constant support and cooperation, tmand reiterates the Command’s unwavering commitment to embrace modern policing techniques, improve the quality of Police Security service delivery across the State, and strengthen public trust and confidence in the Police Force.
“More so, in times of distress or whenever they are harassed by any member of the Force, they should not hesitate to call the Command’s emergency control room, CP Monitoring unit, or IGP X-Squad via any of the following police hotlines: 08034773600, 08098880197, 08148024755 or 08103341610.”
