The CP, who spoke with our correspondent in Uyo on Tuesday,
said a new set of policemen had been posted to the area to conduct
investigation on the matter and also check the rate of criminal activities.
“We have arrested all the policemen who had been linked to
the criminal activities at Owotuta community. They are in the cells. You cannot
wear uniforms and start terrorising the people.
“We have sent new sets of policemen to the area to conduct
in-depth investigation into the matter. Any policeman found culpable will be
prosecuted,” he said.
The policemen were arrested following allegations by the
indigenes that many of the criminal activities in the area were masterminded by
some policemen.
The village head, Chief Emil Isaac, who spoke with
journalists on Monday, said the community had been living in fear due to
incessant robbery attacks.
He stated that whenever the police began shooting during the
day, armed robbers would besiege the community in the night of the same day.
According to him, the bandits who operated in 20s, rape
married women in front of their husbands while single women are raped in front
of their fathers and boyfriends. He added that female youth corps members
posted to the community had also been raped.
He said Owotuta indigenes no longer enjoyed the essence of
living as most times they have to sleep in the bush because of fear of armed
robbery attacks.
Isaac revealed that the vigilance group, which the community
had formed to combat the bandits, could not withstand them as the criminals
often invade the community with sophisticated weapons.
“We live in perpetual fear. The armed robbers have turned
our community into their workshop. They attack us at least three to four times
a month. We do not enjoy the essence of living.
“The robbers upon pillaging the community, rape both married
and single women. In the case of married women, the robbers who compel their
husbands to open their wives’ legs also order them to observe how they rape the
women.
“The others who are single but live with their parents or
boyfriends; the parents or boyfriends are also made to open the legs of these
women as they also order them to watch how they (the women) are being raped.
The female youth corps members are not exception as they had also been raped on
many occasions,” he said.
Isaac also expressed anger that policemen disrupted the
traditional rites being carried by the community to end the incessant robbery
attacks in the area.
He noted that since the community had tried all they could
to end the criminal activities but to no avail, they resolved to seek the
protection of their ancestors.
He stated that when the community met on Friday, October 16,
to begin the process of mbiam (juju) rite, a son to a policeman (who is also a
policeman) began to take video of the procedures.
He added that it was at that process that the community
asked him to stop taking video of the ceremony. He said after persuasion for
him to stop, he told them that he wanted to show the video clips to his father
who was at home.
“I asked him to delete what he had filmed; but he told me
that he wanted to show his father what the community was doing. It was then the
youths pushed him and as he walked towards me, I asked him why he had to film
the juju rite.
“Then I asked, ‘Why must you show the video of what we did
to your father when everybody, indigenes and non-indigenes had been asked to be
present at the ceremony?’ Why did he (the father) not come as he was at home? I
asked him to delete the video and he did. Afterwards he left; and we did not
know where he was heading to.
“As we continued with the rite, the police invaded the
place, and arrested me and eight others. They shot into the air
indiscriminately and disrupted the traditional rite,” he said.
One of the victims, a corps member, Mr. Emmanuel Johnson,
said that on Saturday, September 26, around 2 am robbers broke into their base.
“As robbers came in, they forced my door opened, shot me at
the leg and went away with my official laptop, phones and N5,000. I begged them
to leave my official laptop because of sensitive documents I have in the
system,” he said.
According to him, the robbers said, “Are you arguing with
thieves; Are you begging a thief?’ And as I was still negotiating with them,
they used the butt of the gun to hit me on my forehead and nose.”
A youth leader, Mr. Solomon Nyong, said many of the
policemen had not been transferred out of the area for the past 15 years. He
noted that some of the policemen might have been members of the gangs.
He called on the police authority to look into the documents
of policemen and officers at Ikot Obio Odongo and transfer those who are due
out of the community.
The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Cordelia
Nwawe, ASP, asked the public to always provide useful information to the
police, especially those policemen who go about molesting innocent citizens.
Culled from The Punch
newspaper
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