A coalition of civil society groups has accused naval officers operating along Onitsha- Atani road in Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State, of extorting and harassing innocent people, lamenting that they have become a security threat in the area.
The Executive Director of Human Rights, Liberty Access and Peace Defenders’ Foundation (HURIDE), Mr. Dede Uzor, made the accusation while addressing a cross -section of victims and family members who alleged that they were molested at various checkpoints in the area.
According to Uzor, many residents of the area have been declared missing since the ugly incident reared its head.
Uzor said: “The naval ratings are supposed to be in the sea, but we are surprised to see them mounting road blocks along the Atani Road and Onitsha environs. They now use the road blocks to carry out extortion and harassment of innocent victims. It is quite disheartening that the people are being tormented by those who are supposed to protect them.
“Few days ago, a young man was saved by divine intervention as he would have been killed and labeled a member of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) or a ‘yahoo-yahoo’ by these naval ratings.
“He was stopped as he was going to supply goods to his customers and when they checked his phone and saw a huge amount of money in his account, they accused him of being an IPOB member and a yahoo-yahoo and thereafter ordered him to come down from the vehicle. He was blindfolded and they were taking him to an unknown location, before he raised the alarm.
“What is the aim of blindfolding the young man when he is not a suspect? There was no allegation against him and he is not being investigated of any crime.
“Those people who were on duty on that particular day should be fished out and prosecuted. We are also calling on President Bola Tinubu to embark on an aggressive overhauling of the security apparatus, especially the Navy and by extension, the Eastern Naval Command at Iyiowa Odeekpe.”
Uzor issued a 14-day ultimatum to the naval authorities to investigate the activities of their men on the roads, warning that civil society groups would embark on aggressive protests if nothing is done.
One of the victims, an Onitsha-based businessman who identified himself as Francis Tochukwu, claimed that he was tortured and ordered to sit on the ground for several hours as they accused him of being an IPOB member and yahoo-yahoo.
Tochukwu said: “I am a motor parts dealer. At about 2pm last Tuesday, I was going to Uga Junction to supply goods to a customer when two naval officers stopped the tricycle and ordered me to alight.
“As I came down, they immediately collected my phone, asked me to open it and they went straight into my bank details and after checking, they labeled me an IPOB member, probably because of the sum of N2.3million they saw in the account.
“When I told them that I am not a member of IPOB, they then called me a yahoo-yahoo, which I also said I am not. I told them I am a motor parts dealer and that my shop is at a nearby market in the area. I also told them that the money in that account is for the supply of goods to customers. It was at that point, they ordered me to sit on the ground by the roadside.
“While they were still with my phone and checking through, at about 4pm, their commander came and immediately ordered them to cover my face. it was when they were dragging me to an unknown location that I started raising alarm and the people who know me in the area reached out to my colleagues in the market.
“Before my colleagues in the market came, they had taken me inside an unknown place with my face still tied. “When my colleagues asked the naval officers about me, they denied that I was there. That was when I started shouting and my colleagues heard my voice. “They released me at about 8pm, claiming it was a mistaken identity.”
The commander of Iyiowa Naval Base, Navy Captain Osuobeni could not be reached on phone for his reaction.