…They are not security checkpoints but extortion, humiliation points
…The checkpoints have become commercial banks, and security agents serve as the cashiers
…Security agents treat South-East commuters as prisoners of war, this must stop — Igbo youths
…They extort with brazen impunity – Intersociety
…We go through hell on the roads in Imo – Motorist
…COAS, IGP must do more than giving mere orders — Nwagbara
EXTORTION at security checkpoints on the roads in the South-East region has continued unabated; and it will ‘flourish’ more in the coming days and weeks when the people of South-East residing in other parts of the country and Diaspora will start coming home for the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
As has become their unfortunate fate, they will be confronted with the ugly experiences in the hands of security personnel, especially police and soldiers at the numerous checkpoints on the major roads that lead to the South-East region as well as the ones that connect the five states of the region.
The worrisome thing is that they treat the road users as if they are illegal immigrants in their own country by harassing, intimidating, and humiliating them before extorting the money. And nothing serious has been done by military and police high command to rein in their men despite the outrage it has been generating.
Number of Police, Army checkpoints embarrassing—Onitsha residents
Checks show that from Onitsha to Enugu Express, a distance of about 105 kilometers, travellers are confronted with over 25 security checkpoints, comprising the Army, Police, Road Safety, and NDLEA personnel, an average of a checkpoint after about every three kilometers, in war zones, it is not like that.
Therefore, one of the major worries of road users in the region is their encounters with the police and soldiers at these checkpoints. Recently, a police officer, Inspector Sani Suleiman, attached to Otuocha Area Command in Anambra East Council Area, killed a young man at a checkpoint over his alleged refusal to pay a N100 bribe. According to a fellow driver who witnessed the incident: “We were in the queue at the checkpoint waiting for the police officers to pass us before we suddenly heard the sound of a gunshot. The incident caused chaos and panic as some youths in the area mobilised against the action of the police before they eventually drove off from the scene.”
The affected police officer had, however, been disarmed and detained for further investigations and internal disciplinary procedures.
In Ihiala axis, it is still common to see commuters being ordered out of their vehicles with hands above their shoulders to pass the checkpoints, while the driver drives empty across the checkpoint for them to rejoin him. This also happens along Onitsha-Atani road at Odekpe Road where commercial vehicle operators would park, come down, and approach a stationary vehicle occupied by naval men and drop their money before continuing their journey.This humiliation is scaring Igbo people residing outside the region from returning home for this year’s Christmas celebrations. (Vanguard)