By
Joachim Ezeji
One governor in the current political dispensation in Nigeria that radiates high level mediocrity and ineptitude is the Abia Governor, Mr. Theodore Orji. Events in recent times portray this governor as a man who is very much unfit to remain a day longer in office in whatever capacity. I will rather suggest that the man deserves to be in jail for wasting the time and resources of Abia State.I would have preferred to refer to him as a well fortified fool sake for decency. The man possibly thinks that the rest of Abians’ are as foolish as himself. In civilized societies Mr Orji would have immediately resigned upon the revelation he made recently. While addressing the new commissioners he appointed in Umuahia recently, the Governor had described the ceremony as a crucial chapter in the life of the government and another step towards the consolidation of the government.He had also said that with the liberation of the state from political bondage, what they now have in the state was government of the people, for the people and by the people, and urged the new commissioners to work hard as the state was in a hurry to develop. He unequivocally stated that he was now in full control of the affairs of the state; saying that if it were in the past, all the commissioners would have been handed over to him from certain quarters. What a revelation! Prior to that event Mr. Theodore Orji had dissolved his cabinet which was reconstituted just about one year ago. The dissolution affected all commissioners and all other political appointees such as Special Advisers and Personal Advisers, including about 300 advisers that were appointed in May. Political observers in the state saw the action of Governor Orji as a step towards freeing himself from the alleged stronghold of former governor Kalu and his mother who had been having huge influence in the governance of the state since he came to power. But at what cost, who lost? Abians of course! And shortly after dissolving his cabinet, the governor quit his original party for the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA). Speaking to newsmen in Umuahia, his aide on Print Media, Mr Joshua Ogbonna, had said the governor left the People Progressive Alliance, (PPA) as a result of the irreconcilable and crises that have bedeviled the party in recent times.The climax was that on July 2, the leadership of the party led by DIM Odimegwu Ojukwu, Peter Obi and National Chairman of the party, Chief Victor Umeh, all gathered in Umuahia to receive Governor Orji into their party. According to Mr. Joshua Ogbonna….. “Since they have made the party uncomfortable for him, he had no choice but to find solace in a more disciplined focused and people-oriented party which is APGA.Yet again, within a few weeks, the same man did quit APGA for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). In doing so, he rubbished the personalities that graced his return to APGA on the previous occasion such as DIM Odimegwu Ojukwu. What we hear now is that the move was proper in order to realign Abia to national politics and optimize political benefits for the state. Some loyalists of the governor are also using every opportunity to blast our eyes on the need to keep Abia on the mainstream of national politics.Nevertheless one thing that is clear from this macabre dance is the desperation to remain in power at all cost, and this is irrespective of the wishes of the people. Governor Orji and his loyalist are fanatically inclined to the PDP ballot rigging machine and are hopeful of benefiting from there. The desperation to still remain in office despite woeful performance as governor is largely responsible for this so-called return to the PDP.This is synonymous with events in Imo State, two years ago when Mr. Ikedi Ohakim quit the PPA for the PDP. The same reasons adduced in Abia were also adduced in Imo. On both occasions, people of these two states were told that this was the only way to facilitate the actualization of the Igbo presidency. But these are fairy tales, good only for gullible minds as they need to be reminded that Igbo presidency can never be possible in an environment dominated by political underachievers and harlots whose only guaranty to victory is ballot fraud and judicial merchandise.I have never really taken Governor Orji serious because I had always seen him and his brother- governor Ikedi Ohakim as backwater governors who came into office through the back door without any iota of public scrutiny. Their coming to power was a catastrophic accident that took all and sundry by surprise. No sane political mind ever imagined that it could happen in the 21st century Nigeria. But it did, and we are collectively paying the high price.My consolation however, is the lessons to be learnt from this accident. One of them is the fact that the defection of these governors is a showcase of the nature of their characters, affiliations and backgrounds. And these consist of greed, avarice, lust and poverty of morality. On the surface one may query what actually took them to PPA in the first instance? And what level of relationship they did have with Orji Ozor Kalu the founder of PPA prior to and before defection? For Mr. Theodore Orji, one may also want to know why he defected to and quit APGA within a few weeks. An analysis of these questions will reveal these men as birds of the same feather that needs isolation from the civilized world. Behind the veil of government authority are politically amorphous men, enormously lacking in character, morality, genuine followership and social capital.Another lesson to be learnt is that as the Igbo nation remain hopeful of Igbo presidency, characters to look up to are those similar to, and proportional to those of the likes of Mr. Peter Obi of Anambra State. Governor Peter Obi understands very much how he came to power and has to a large extent lived up to the expectations of his people. His actions have facilitated enormous goodwill for him and his party in Anambra State which subsequently ensured his re-election as governor last year. He did not need defection to achieve re-election. To Peter Obi what should really matter while in political office is performance, not jumping around and making bizarre confessions without genuine atonement as we currently witness in Abia. Do Governors Fashola, Oshiomole and Mimiko need any defection to secure re-election? What then is actually the problem with these Igbo governors other than gullibility? Again, the PDP as a party in self denial is again in big dilemma as the events of 2011 unfolds. It has to subject itself to real democratic ethos which includes making the political field open, free and fair to all contestants. By this, it has to contend with organizing fair and free primaries as well as subjecting itself to free and fair national and state elections thereafter. But can this be possible with all these compromises here and there particularly with the influx of non- performing Governors Orji and Ohakim defecting to its fold?I am of the strong opinion that the likes of Governor Theodore Orji should out rightly be disqualified from presenting himself for re-election under any political platform, the PDP inclusive, based on his recent confessions that his government since 2007 has been serving the personal interests of himself and those of his godfather – Orji Uzor Kalu. The implication of those revelations are damning as it shows to the extent Abia State has been short-changed in the past 36 months. Well meaning Abia citizens should stand up and throw their gauntlet into the 2011 race and get this inferior man unelected as he attempts to re-present himself for the 2011 elections. Please fellow Abians’ let’s put a stop to this cascading stupidity.
Abia Kwenu!
Showing posts with label Abia state. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Abia state. Show all posts
Saturday, 28 August 2010
Monday, 21 June 2010
Aba: Elegy for a dying city
By
Ogechi B. Ezeji (nee Enekwa)
From the stores, my father used to tell me when I was a little girl stories about Aba, the famed enyimba city. According to him, then, the city of Aba was one city that most people in the South eastern part of Nigeria looked forward to moving into in the early 70s immediately after the war with a hope for greener pasture. They indeed found greener pastures there, as Aba was a home for many budding indigenous businesses. The town experienced high urban migration and young men who came to the town with just a plastic bag containing a few items of clothing soon emerged through the virtue of hard work. Then the streets and roads were good and clean.
You could tell a cab driver the place you are going to, even when you have not been there before, and trust him to take you there as the town was modestly planned, houses adequately numbered and men of goodwill were then still many. Though the city was smaller than it is today geographically, it had modest facilities expected from an emerging urban center such as Recreation Park, good roads and planned residential areas. Residents were content and had a great communal spirit such was the hay days of the great Enyimba city, home of Enyimba F.C.
By the late 70’s and the 80’s the good old days were gone. The city’s recreation park at market road had been taken over by carpenters and hair dressers. The city was gradually degenerating into a Slum. Major roads such as Ngwa Road, Uratta Road and Faulks Road were taken over by flood and erosion rendering the roads impassable by vehicles. All the government of the day could do most times was to spray the roads with a few trips of asphalt and carry on with their “I don’t care” attitude. The only roads that remained intact were those built by Mbakwe’s administration in the old Imo State. A feeling of squalor, degradation and hopelessness hung thickly in the air. Then, my father would look back to the good old days and pensively mutter: Aba is dying. However, as compared to what is happening today in Aba, it is clear that the town was only suffering from minor aliment then.
In the late 90’s and at the dawn of the millennium, the problem of infrastructural decay became secondary as there was a geometric rise in crime rate. Armed robbers operated with impunity and dexterity as has never been seen before. Aba City dwellers wailed to the government. The government and state security agents appeared too weak to combat the men of the under-world, hence the emergence and rise to prominence of the Bakkassi movement. Though the Bakkassi Movement resulted in many extra-judicial killings, it marched forces with the bandits overpowered them and temporarily restored security and sanity to Aba City.
Crime in the City took a new dimension with the advent of kidnapping. As an offshoot of the Niger Delta crisis, kidnapping of high net worth individuals became a veritable source of livelihood to the crimmals who have come to be known as the “Big Boys”. The sophistication of the criminals and the ammunitions with which they carried out their nefarious activities to say the least made a caricature of all state security agents in Enyimba City and rendered the Bakkassi boys inept.
As would be expected, high net worth individuals and business movers fled the city and relocated their businesses. The result has been overnight atrophy of the commercial fortunes of one of the biggest commercial cities in the country. This becomes particularly worrisome when one considers the fact that over 60% of Abia State’s internally generated revenue comes from Aba alone. Aba is also the home of many prominent Nigerians, some of whom currently sit in our senate chamber and House of Representatives; decked in designers clothes. The government in its usual manner took some reactive measures to make the people believe they are doing some thing. Stopping of the operation of commercial cyclists was one of the measures and this has long proved abortive.
There was also an influx of all forms of uniformed men into the town ranging from the regular police men, mobile police men and the anti-terrorist squad. Their influx was not just an effort in futility but also increased the menace suffered by the citizens as they resorted to extorting money from commercial motorists and took to their heels at the sight of the “Big Boys” – armed miscreants. The latest of these reactive measures was the amnesty program that was announced by Abia State government not too long ago. The question becomes whether the state government is granting amnesty to criminals as a way of accepting defeat. It is also important to note that in jurisdictions where we imported the concept of amnesty from, amnesty is not granted for funfair. To say the least; the program has proved itself a laughable one.
Today daylight robberies, sporadic shootings and incessant killing of innocent citizens in Aba become a norm. An average six year old can now distinguish between the sound of an AK47 and that of a double barrel. One wonders the difference between Aba and war-torn areas like the Gaza. This however, is not without its attendant consequence on the people such as nervous shock, heart failure and other health hazards.
The climax seems to have been reached with the recent daily robbing of Banks in Aba which resulted in all Banks in Aba embarking on their just concluded one week protest closure which brought the economy of the town to a halt. Banks are formal institutions recognized by the state and in developed civilizations formal institutions do not close shops in fear of bandits. As a solution to this, more ill – equipped uniformed men have been moved into the city. Whether their presence would make any difference is a question for another day.
On a final note, the question for Ngwa people, the so-called indigenes or owners of Aba; all Abians, Abia State government and the federal government is: shall we fold our hands and allow this song of the dead sound louder and louder, close in on us and mark the final demise of the city, Aba?
I do hope that as the 2011 polls draw closer, Abians will not allow themselves to be bamboozled by old politicians in new brocades and their baloney such as: “one good tenure deserves another” “let the good work continue etc. They should rather let their votes make the difference by empowering men of integrity who will restore security amongst other things to Aba and Abia State in general.
Ironically, Aba is not the only city in this unfortunate bracket; many other Nigerian cities are!
Ogechi B. Ezeji (nee Enekwa)
From the stores, my father used to tell me when I was a little girl stories about Aba, the famed enyimba city. According to him, then, the city of Aba was one city that most people in the South eastern part of Nigeria looked forward to moving into in the early 70s immediately after the war with a hope for greener pasture. They indeed found greener pastures there, as Aba was a home for many budding indigenous businesses. The town experienced high urban migration and young men who came to the town with just a plastic bag containing a few items of clothing soon emerged through the virtue of hard work. Then the streets and roads were good and clean.
You could tell a cab driver the place you are going to, even when you have not been there before, and trust him to take you there as the town was modestly planned, houses adequately numbered and men of goodwill were then still many. Though the city was smaller than it is today geographically, it had modest facilities expected from an emerging urban center such as Recreation Park, good roads and planned residential areas. Residents were content and had a great communal spirit such was the hay days of the great Enyimba city, home of Enyimba F.C.
By the late 70’s and the 80’s the good old days were gone. The city’s recreation park at market road had been taken over by carpenters and hair dressers. The city was gradually degenerating into a Slum. Major roads such as Ngwa Road, Uratta Road and Faulks Road were taken over by flood and erosion rendering the roads impassable by vehicles. All the government of the day could do most times was to spray the roads with a few trips of asphalt and carry on with their “I don’t care” attitude. The only roads that remained intact were those built by Mbakwe’s administration in the old Imo State. A feeling of squalor, degradation and hopelessness hung thickly in the air. Then, my father would look back to the good old days and pensively mutter: Aba is dying. However, as compared to what is happening today in Aba, it is clear that the town was only suffering from minor aliment then.
In the late 90’s and at the dawn of the millennium, the problem of infrastructural decay became secondary as there was a geometric rise in crime rate. Armed robbers operated with impunity and dexterity as has never been seen before. Aba City dwellers wailed to the government. The government and state security agents appeared too weak to combat the men of the under-world, hence the emergence and rise to prominence of the Bakkassi movement. Though the Bakkassi Movement resulted in many extra-judicial killings, it marched forces with the bandits overpowered them and temporarily restored security and sanity to Aba City.
Crime in the City took a new dimension with the advent of kidnapping. As an offshoot of the Niger Delta crisis, kidnapping of high net worth individuals became a veritable source of livelihood to the crimmals who have come to be known as the “Big Boys”. The sophistication of the criminals and the ammunitions with which they carried out their nefarious activities to say the least made a caricature of all state security agents in Enyimba City and rendered the Bakkassi boys inept.
As would be expected, high net worth individuals and business movers fled the city and relocated their businesses. The result has been overnight atrophy of the commercial fortunes of one of the biggest commercial cities in the country. This becomes particularly worrisome when one considers the fact that over 60% of Abia State’s internally generated revenue comes from Aba alone. Aba is also the home of many prominent Nigerians, some of whom currently sit in our senate chamber and House of Representatives; decked in designers clothes. The government in its usual manner took some reactive measures to make the people believe they are doing some thing. Stopping of the operation of commercial cyclists was one of the measures and this has long proved abortive.
There was also an influx of all forms of uniformed men into the town ranging from the regular police men, mobile police men and the anti-terrorist squad. Their influx was not just an effort in futility but also increased the menace suffered by the citizens as they resorted to extorting money from commercial motorists and took to their heels at the sight of the “Big Boys” – armed miscreants. The latest of these reactive measures was the amnesty program that was announced by Abia State government not too long ago. The question becomes whether the state government is granting amnesty to criminals as a way of accepting defeat. It is also important to note that in jurisdictions where we imported the concept of amnesty from, amnesty is not granted for funfair. To say the least; the program has proved itself a laughable one.
Today daylight robberies, sporadic shootings and incessant killing of innocent citizens in Aba become a norm. An average six year old can now distinguish between the sound of an AK47 and that of a double barrel. One wonders the difference between Aba and war-torn areas like the Gaza. This however, is not without its attendant consequence on the people such as nervous shock, heart failure and other health hazards.
The climax seems to have been reached with the recent daily robbing of Banks in Aba which resulted in all Banks in Aba embarking on their just concluded one week protest closure which brought the economy of the town to a halt. Banks are formal institutions recognized by the state and in developed civilizations formal institutions do not close shops in fear of bandits. As a solution to this, more ill – equipped uniformed men have been moved into the city. Whether their presence would make any difference is a question for another day.
On a final note, the question for Ngwa people, the so-called indigenes or owners of Aba; all Abians, Abia State government and the federal government is: shall we fold our hands and allow this song of the dead sound louder and louder, close in on us and mark the final demise of the city, Aba?
I do hope that as the 2011 polls draw closer, Abians will not allow themselves to be bamboozled by old politicians in new brocades and their baloney such as: “one good tenure deserves another” “let the good work continue etc. They should rather let their votes make the difference by empowering men of integrity who will restore security amongst other things to Aba and Abia State in general.
Ironically, Aba is not the only city in this unfortunate bracket; many other Nigerian cities are!
Friday, 4 June 2010
It could happen to you!
My friend Pastor Emma Ekong sent me this story and I opted to share it with a wider audience. It was originally titled “The story of my abduction”. It is the story of the abduction of Dr. Ohaka, a medical doctor based in Port Harcourt. The story was told by Dr. Ohaka himself.
Please kindly read on ……………“ I was traveling from Aba in Abia state back to Port Harcourt where I reside after a marriage introduction ceremony of my youngest sister Nene in my family house in Aba. I left the house at about 4pm that day 15/5/2010 with my small uncle Anayo and a cousin Maureen. Maureen dropped somewhere in Aba while I proceeded to Port Harcourt with Anayo. We had barely traveled 11km when we met what appeared to be a routine Police check point at Ihie. Normally we were flagged down for routine check at about 5pm or even later. I was asked for my driving license which I produced, I was asked to come down and open my boot and it was at this point that I was told to enter a waiting Kia saloon car facing right and at right angle to the main express road. Other vehicles were stopped simultaneously for stop and search. An SUV that refused to stop was sprayed with bullets with apparent missing of targets and within about 5minutes the operation was over. About 2 vehicles carried the victims, a Kia saloon and a Pathfinder SUV. Some of us were loaded in the booths. After 5minutes drive into the village we were all blind folded and now driven through untarred bush roads to an isolated location which was a transit point. It took about extra 5minutes to get there. You know things were happening fast and it was so easy to lose tract of time. At this temporary site, we were thoroughly beaten with the butts and barrels of the gun. I never knew pains could be felt in quick succession after trauma to a particular point. When I was hit at the back with the AK47 assault riffle, I felt the first superficial pain and this was followed immediately by another crushing pain much deeper. We were about 15 people, men, women and children. After about 4hours, the women and children were driven back to the road to find their ways home. We the men, about 9 in number now waited for the next 1.5hours to be taken to their so-called police cell were they kept captives. In the transit camp where we were kept, there is one small house inhabited by a woman and some 2 or 3 children. The woman had normal conversations with our captors and her small baby was always crying. We left the temporary area in the same 2 vehicles and by 10minutes we were in the cell. The place was surrounded by bushes and harbored a roofed but un-completed block house with doors. A standby generator was on and I had lifted the scarf over my eyes a little long before we left the transit location. We were bundled into a dark room wit one window and with 8 captives inside already. The mode of capture of these previous 8 was targeted and not as random as ours. Example the councilor was visited by them as a Police team in a Police vehicle and informed that he was wanted in the police station in connection with certain matters. He followed them willingly. We could only sit or lie down with our eyes covered. We were 17 in number in my cell. These include 3 Royal highnesses (The Eze of Isuochi, The Eze of Omuma, and another very important Eze that I couldn’t quite identify well because he was taken away shortly for ‘special treatment’ and remained there after I left), the councilor representing a constituency in Omuma (hypertensive and diabetic), a retired NNPC manger (diabetic), a retired CBN supervisor, a PTI lecturer/pastor, 2 yahoo fraudsters, drivers, a tailor, and some others. Our cell phones, money and every other belonging were taken from us apart from our clothing. Food is never given to the captives and water is dispensed at extreme discretion of the captors and by my calculation this amounted to 500mls alternate daily. At a point the councilor drank my water as I moved a little out of my position to urinate. As it was close to midnight, the captors encouraged us to pray and came in periodically to check on us. I must tell you that we all prayed as never before till morning. We also continued to pray like that every day. For me it was as true as daylight. The next day was a Sunday and at about 9am, the captor in-charge of making contacts for the captives came into our cell enquiring for people needing to contact their people for early release. It followed the sequence from interrogation about yourself and work to brutality and torture, bargain for release and possible mortal injury following failure to reach an amicable settlement. One of the captive’s phone lines was always used for these contacts. The man in charge of the contact making is called a name. I figure he is the 3rd in command in the camp. He comes with aides who brutalize the captives mercilessly on failure to agree to a stated bill which runs into millions of naira. My initial bill was N10million even though it came down to N2m later. I was now asked to talk to my people. I talked to my people and returned the phone to the captors for negotiation with my people. The first bidding amount from my people was N100,000 which earned me the beating of my life in the hands his aides. I was hit with the gun repeatedly and while pointed close to my neck with the gun corked and uncorked severally and with several simultaneous kicks on the head and body, I was asked to talk to my people. The beating was temporarily halted when impressed it on my people of the need again to be ‘reasonable’ amidst my cry of pains. I was one of the youngest captive. One can now imagine the impact of the brutality on an elderly man and the sick people. On that Sunday the councilor was beaten blue and black on failure to accept the N10million request fast. This was a frail looking man with 10 children, a wife and with the whole extended family as dependants. He collapsed with repeated hits on the head, ribs, hands and every other parts of the body with the butt, barrel of the gun and woods measuring 2inch x 2inch in thickness. He was literally left helpless on the floor. He constantly bemoaned his fate and wished to die in his house where his corpse will at-least be seen and given a burial unlike the camp here where our captors will bury him. He recovered a little by Monday but that never gave him any reprieve as he continued to receive thorough beating like the rest of us. Many of us all cried like babies. The councilor got his people to sell his new car, his lands, and several other belongings and all amounted to the sum of N450,000. He also sought to collect the month’s contribution among 10 of his colleagues amounting to N500,000 which never materialized by the time I left them. My brother it was pathetic for the diabetic and the hypertensive. It is noteworthy that age was no barrier to the brutality because we had 2 people who were above 70years of age, the Eze of Omuma and the Eze of Isuochi. The first received thorough but a moderated level brutality which increased sequentially with each daily failure to meet the captors’ demand while the second, though brutalized, had some significant consideration because he is 74years. His wife had to walk virtually the whole streets begging for money and he also had to sell lands. The rest received the same level of brutality and torture which increased with every passing day. I tried to get close to the retired NNPC man who is also a pastor because I felt he never understood the psychology of this group that prefer to call themselves Abia State Militants. He never agreed to any fixed amount and I felt he mistook the initial moderation of the brutality on him as a spiritual effect. He is a retired man and probably over 60yrs of age. However, he was soon to understand that his judgment was wrong. The mercilessness of the boys was un-paralleled because by the time I was leaving the camp on Tuesday night there was a special torture session carried out simultaneously by over 20 of the militants which I myself may have found difficult to recover from despite my good physical fitness. The captors had claimed that a cell phone had been stolen in the camp and all the captives that refused to bargain ‘properly’ were responsible. The captors appear not to have much interest on what they regard as poor fools like drivers, gaunt looking people, mechanics, tailors etc. Even though the ‘poor fools’ sometimes pay all their savings to the captors, they tend to receive good considerations in terms of length of stay only. I left the camp after the direct negotiation between my people and my captors went through. We left the camp at about 10pm on Tuesday. Those released that night were the Professor (Eze of Isuochi), one pastor, one driver and my humble self. Three of us were bundled into the booth of a Nissan Pathfinder SUV while Prof was given the privilege of sitting down comfortably inside the car. As we left the camp, one or two small boys were moving about close by and our captors questioned the supposed strangers in a loud voice asking “who be that” and the small boys (I say small boys from their voice on reply) answered “I beg na indigenes”. The Eze of Omuma was released a day earlier after paying the sum of one million two hundred thousand naira. After about 5minutes into our journey to freedom, the SUV stopped suddenly and refused to start again. After a few futile attempts to start the car, the four armed captors disembarked and called the camp for another vehicle. They identified their position as opposite the Nigerian Police Station. In less than 4minutes a new Toyota corolla arrived for us to continue our journey. I was asked to enter the booth with the pastor/PTI lecturer. They discharged us at Ihie junction and gave us transport money. We all walked bare footed because even our shoes were collected. I received N500.00. They also informed me that my vehicle was at the Police station. The Prof and the released driver proceeded to Portharcourt while I proceeded to Aba with the pastor. I arrived my family house at Aba at about 12:09am on Wednesday to the jubilation of my parents and every other person in the house and on the street. I am grateful to my relatives who contributed immensely for my release. They include my parents, my wife, my brother, my sisters, my cousin, my uncles abroad, my in-laws, my mother’s uncle, my aunt, the pastors who prayed continually, my local church, my genuine friends who acted promptly and several well wishers.
I did not involve the police and it was the best decision. The location of the camp is not hidden. The subdued villagers know them and also know all their locations. Again the terrain of the area consisting of thick bushes, well spaced houses and the bad nature of the road all combine to favor the use of those locations by the militants. The militants tend to wear military uniforms in the camp and police uniforms with police bullet proof vest outside the camp for their normal operations. They carry AK47 assault riffles and perform drills each morning in the bush around the cell building- the so-called camp. All the boys spoke the local dialect- asa/ngwa version of igbo language. The chairman/leader of the group who authorized each release has facial tribal marks, speaks same dialect. It may not surprise me if he is a northerner and security personnel. It is impossible that the security agents do not know their position. The joy of release subdued all the pains. I also forgot I had not eaten for 4days. I proceeded to Ihie Police station to collect my car as I was informed by my captors as my car was too old for an operational vehicle. I saw the vehicle at local police station at Ihie. I fulfilled their formalities, made statements and informed them of the release of Prof. In doing these I guarded my utterances because you never know who the insiders were. I also spoke with the DPO of the station. I also met some special police units who came on routine patrol to the police station and narrated my ordeal to them. On this visit to retrieve my car I also observed that the security agents concentrated their presence on the express road leaving the entire village empty. My brother even the people you are supposed to report to are scared and appear helpless. You also cannot rule out their support from politicians because of several boasts of installing candidates come 2011. Information flow freely in the camp there; it is unimaginable how the information comes without government/security insiders. It also appeared they were planning relocation soon based on the insiders’ requests; possibly because of impending raid by government forces. They claim to pay some insiders-the normal Nigerian settlement.
It is pathetic the level Abia state has degenerated to. It is a level just slightly above those of animals and the bottom line is greed, corruption, power drunkenness. I understand Imo-state is following closely. I became ill on Thursday- the cumulative effects of the ordeal. My heart goes out to the innocent men still in captivity. I wonder if they will make it alive. They include the retired NNPC manger/pastor in Winners chapel (Yoruba), retired CBN supervisor (Igbo), the councilor (Omuma), The Eze who I could not identify well. What if these kidnappers were ritualists; what would have been our fate; it is all greed, corruption, power drunkenness. Until there is good and committed leadership everything will continue to go downhill”.
Nigeria, what a shame!
Please kindly read on ……………“ I was traveling from Aba in Abia state back to Port Harcourt where I reside after a marriage introduction ceremony of my youngest sister Nene in my family house in Aba. I left the house at about 4pm that day 15/5/2010 with my small uncle Anayo and a cousin Maureen. Maureen dropped somewhere in Aba while I proceeded to Port Harcourt with Anayo. We had barely traveled 11km when we met what appeared to be a routine Police check point at Ihie. Normally we were flagged down for routine check at about 5pm or even later. I was asked for my driving license which I produced, I was asked to come down and open my boot and it was at this point that I was told to enter a waiting Kia saloon car facing right and at right angle to the main express road. Other vehicles were stopped simultaneously for stop and search. An SUV that refused to stop was sprayed with bullets with apparent missing of targets and within about 5minutes the operation was over. About 2 vehicles carried the victims, a Kia saloon and a Pathfinder SUV. Some of us were loaded in the booths. After 5minutes drive into the village we were all blind folded and now driven through untarred bush roads to an isolated location which was a transit point. It took about extra 5minutes to get there. You know things were happening fast and it was so easy to lose tract of time. At this temporary site, we were thoroughly beaten with the butts and barrels of the gun. I never knew pains could be felt in quick succession after trauma to a particular point. When I was hit at the back with the AK47 assault riffle, I felt the first superficial pain and this was followed immediately by another crushing pain much deeper. We were about 15 people, men, women and children. After about 4hours, the women and children were driven back to the road to find their ways home. We the men, about 9 in number now waited for the next 1.5hours to be taken to their so-called police cell were they kept captives. In the transit camp where we were kept, there is one small house inhabited by a woman and some 2 or 3 children. The woman had normal conversations with our captors and her small baby was always crying. We left the temporary area in the same 2 vehicles and by 10minutes we were in the cell. The place was surrounded by bushes and harbored a roofed but un-completed block house with doors. A standby generator was on and I had lifted the scarf over my eyes a little long before we left the transit location. We were bundled into a dark room wit one window and with 8 captives inside already. The mode of capture of these previous 8 was targeted and not as random as ours. Example the councilor was visited by them as a Police team in a Police vehicle and informed that he was wanted in the police station in connection with certain matters. He followed them willingly. We could only sit or lie down with our eyes covered. We were 17 in number in my cell. These include 3 Royal highnesses (The Eze of Isuochi, The Eze of Omuma, and another very important Eze that I couldn’t quite identify well because he was taken away shortly for ‘special treatment’ and remained there after I left), the councilor representing a constituency in Omuma (hypertensive and diabetic), a retired NNPC manger (diabetic), a retired CBN supervisor, a PTI lecturer/pastor, 2 yahoo fraudsters, drivers, a tailor, and some others. Our cell phones, money and every other belonging were taken from us apart from our clothing. Food is never given to the captives and water is dispensed at extreme discretion of the captors and by my calculation this amounted to 500mls alternate daily. At a point the councilor drank my water as I moved a little out of my position to urinate. As it was close to midnight, the captors encouraged us to pray and came in periodically to check on us. I must tell you that we all prayed as never before till morning. We also continued to pray like that every day. For me it was as true as daylight. The next day was a Sunday and at about 9am, the captor in-charge of making contacts for the captives came into our cell enquiring for people needing to contact their people for early release. It followed the sequence from interrogation about yourself and work to brutality and torture, bargain for release and possible mortal injury following failure to reach an amicable settlement. One of the captive’s phone lines was always used for these contacts. The man in charge of the contact making is called a name. I figure he is the 3rd in command in the camp. He comes with aides who brutalize the captives mercilessly on failure to agree to a stated bill which runs into millions of naira. My initial bill was N10million even though it came down to N2m later. I was now asked to talk to my people. I talked to my people and returned the phone to the captors for negotiation with my people. The first bidding amount from my people was N100,000 which earned me the beating of my life in the hands his aides. I was hit with the gun repeatedly and while pointed close to my neck with the gun corked and uncorked severally and with several simultaneous kicks on the head and body, I was asked to talk to my people. The beating was temporarily halted when impressed it on my people of the need again to be ‘reasonable’ amidst my cry of pains. I was one of the youngest captive. One can now imagine the impact of the brutality on an elderly man and the sick people. On that Sunday the councilor was beaten blue and black on failure to accept the N10million request fast. This was a frail looking man with 10 children, a wife and with the whole extended family as dependants. He collapsed with repeated hits on the head, ribs, hands and every other parts of the body with the butt, barrel of the gun and woods measuring 2inch x 2inch in thickness. He was literally left helpless on the floor. He constantly bemoaned his fate and wished to die in his house where his corpse will at-least be seen and given a burial unlike the camp here where our captors will bury him. He recovered a little by Monday but that never gave him any reprieve as he continued to receive thorough beating like the rest of us. Many of us all cried like babies. The councilor got his people to sell his new car, his lands, and several other belongings and all amounted to the sum of N450,000. He also sought to collect the month’s contribution among 10 of his colleagues amounting to N500,000 which never materialized by the time I left them. My brother it was pathetic for the diabetic and the hypertensive. It is noteworthy that age was no barrier to the brutality because we had 2 people who were above 70years of age, the Eze of Omuma and the Eze of Isuochi. The first received thorough but a moderated level brutality which increased sequentially with each daily failure to meet the captors’ demand while the second, though brutalized, had some significant consideration because he is 74years. His wife had to walk virtually the whole streets begging for money and he also had to sell lands. The rest received the same level of brutality and torture which increased with every passing day. I tried to get close to the retired NNPC man who is also a pastor because I felt he never understood the psychology of this group that prefer to call themselves Abia State Militants. He never agreed to any fixed amount and I felt he mistook the initial moderation of the brutality on him as a spiritual effect. He is a retired man and probably over 60yrs of age. However, he was soon to understand that his judgment was wrong. The mercilessness of the boys was un-paralleled because by the time I was leaving the camp on Tuesday night there was a special torture session carried out simultaneously by over 20 of the militants which I myself may have found difficult to recover from despite my good physical fitness. The captors had claimed that a cell phone had been stolen in the camp and all the captives that refused to bargain ‘properly’ were responsible. The captors appear not to have much interest on what they regard as poor fools like drivers, gaunt looking people, mechanics, tailors etc. Even though the ‘poor fools’ sometimes pay all their savings to the captors, they tend to receive good considerations in terms of length of stay only. I left the camp after the direct negotiation between my people and my captors went through. We left the camp at about 10pm on Tuesday. Those released that night were the Professor (Eze of Isuochi), one pastor, one driver and my humble self. Three of us were bundled into the booth of a Nissan Pathfinder SUV while Prof was given the privilege of sitting down comfortably inside the car. As we left the camp, one or two small boys were moving about close by and our captors questioned the supposed strangers in a loud voice asking “who be that” and the small boys (I say small boys from their voice on reply) answered “I beg na indigenes”. The Eze of Omuma was released a day earlier after paying the sum of one million two hundred thousand naira. After about 5minutes into our journey to freedom, the SUV stopped suddenly and refused to start again. After a few futile attempts to start the car, the four armed captors disembarked and called the camp for another vehicle. They identified their position as opposite the Nigerian Police Station. In less than 4minutes a new Toyota corolla arrived for us to continue our journey. I was asked to enter the booth with the pastor/PTI lecturer. They discharged us at Ihie junction and gave us transport money. We all walked bare footed because even our shoes were collected. I received N500.00. They also informed me that my vehicle was at the Police station. The Prof and the released driver proceeded to Portharcourt while I proceeded to Aba with the pastor. I arrived my family house at Aba at about 12:09am on Wednesday to the jubilation of my parents and every other person in the house and on the street. I am grateful to my relatives who contributed immensely for my release. They include my parents, my wife, my brother, my sisters, my cousin, my uncles abroad, my in-laws, my mother’s uncle, my aunt, the pastors who prayed continually, my local church, my genuine friends who acted promptly and several well wishers.
I did not involve the police and it was the best decision. The location of the camp is not hidden. The subdued villagers know them and also know all their locations. Again the terrain of the area consisting of thick bushes, well spaced houses and the bad nature of the road all combine to favor the use of those locations by the militants. The militants tend to wear military uniforms in the camp and police uniforms with police bullet proof vest outside the camp for their normal operations. They carry AK47 assault riffles and perform drills each morning in the bush around the cell building- the so-called camp. All the boys spoke the local dialect- asa/ngwa version of igbo language. The chairman/leader of the group who authorized each release has facial tribal marks, speaks same dialect. It may not surprise me if he is a northerner and security personnel. It is impossible that the security agents do not know their position. The joy of release subdued all the pains. I also forgot I had not eaten for 4days. I proceeded to Ihie Police station to collect my car as I was informed by my captors as my car was too old for an operational vehicle. I saw the vehicle at local police station at Ihie. I fulfilled their formalities, made statements and informed them of the release of Prof. In doing these I guarded my utterances because you never know who the insiders were. I also spoke with the DPO of the station. I also met some special police units who came on routine patrol to the police station and narrated my ordeal to them. On this visit to retrieve my car I also observed that the security agents concentrated their presence on the express road leaving the entire village empty. My brother even the people you are supposed to report to are scared and appear helpless. You also cannot rule out their support from politicians because of several boasts of installing candidates come 2011. Information flow freely in the camp there; it is unimaginable how the information comes without government/security insiders. It also appeared they were planning relocation soon based on the insiders’ requests; possibly because of impending raid by government forces. They claim to pay some insiders-the normal Nigerian settlement.
It is pathetic the level Abia state has degenerated to. It is a level just slightly above those of animals and the bottom line is greed, corruption, power drunkenness. I understand Imo-state is following closely. I became ill on Thursday- the cumulative effects of the ordeal. My heart goes out to the innocent men still in captivity. I wonder if they will make it alive. They include the retired NNPC manger/pastor in Winners chapel (Yoruba), retired CBN supervisor (Igbo), the councilor (Omuma), The Eze who I could not identify well. What if these kidnappers were ritualists; what would have been our fate; it is all greed, corruption, power drunkenness. Until there is good and committed leadership everything will continue to go downhill”.
Nigeria, what a shame!
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