By Okey Maduforo Awka
The viral video where one Mr Wilfred Ezike was tortured and given inhuman treatment few days ago at Onitsha by members of the State Anti Touting Special Squad is currently generating controversy over alleged duping of Ezike to the tune of N12 Million.
Recall that Wilfred Ezike had his both legs shattered by members of the Anti Touting Special Squad with a kitchen pestle while he was being tortured.
Speaking to reporters the embattled Wilfred Ezike alleged that;
“I had a discussion with Me Hypolatus and Mr Elvis Okoli about the purchase of Keke emblems along with my business partner and they asked us to pay N12 Million and that was in 2023 and I paid in a cheque of N11 million to Me Hypolatus through Man in Charge whose real name is Elvis Okoli”
“Since them they have not handed over the emblems to me and during a telephone conference call with them they said that they are not in the position of those emblems”
“When I insisted that I want my money back they said they will not pay and accused me of collecting revenue with the name of the Tricycle Owners of Nigeria illegally”
“They later invited me to somewhere for me to clear myself of those allegations and when I got there they started beating and torturing me and stripped me naked accusing me of extorting money from Keke operators”
“This was the conspiracy of these two people who are still owing me money for the emblems that I had paid for” he said.
But Elvis Okoli who is incidentally the state secretary of the Tricycle Owners of Nigeria dismissed the allegations of of Ezike contending that he had no hand in. the sales and distribution of emblems.
“Well I. The first place I am shocked and confused about this allegation because his words are at variance with each other saying that we duped him ”
“He is the Vice Chairman of the Tricycle Owners of Nigeria of which I am the secretary and surprisingly it was discovered that they were operating at Onitsha and collecting revenue even when we as a union had stopped work due to allegations by the Anti Touting Special Squad that we are the once collecting money from Keke operators”
“The Anti Touting Special Squad arrested some of his boys and they said that they were accounting to Wilfred Ezike and later they arrested his boys again and they said that they are working for him ”
“Because of that he organized his boys and they wrote a petition against the Anti Touting Special Squad because they were making things difficult for him and invited me to come and sign and I told them that I cannot sign the petition and they tried to compel me to sign and I stood my grounds ”
“Then they asked me to resign since I don’t want to sign the petition and I said how can I sign a petition against a government established body ”
“It is in the public domain that all emblems of 2023 fir Keke were distributed by one Hypolitus Ekwegbere and not me he is the one that supplies and not me ,why is this man trying to drag me into his mess? ”
“I want it to be on record that I am not surprised that he is trying to drag me into his controversy and he has to produce evidence of my being involved in that allegation” he said.