By Kelechi Esogwa-Amadi
The call by the paramount ruler of Oyigbo, Eze Mike Nwaji, on Monday, that the army should stop indiscriminate arrests of residents in Oyigbo based on rumours that they are Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) members, seems not to have impressed the residents.
This is because they feel that it took the paramount ruler too much time to make the call, after many innocent people in the area have been arrested and allegedly maltreated on the false premise that they are members of the proscribed IPOB alleged to have perpetrated the attack on police stations and killing of some soldiers and police men during the EndSARS protests four weeks ago.
Eze Mike Nwaji had on Monday, spoken out strongly against alleged indiscriminate arrest of some residents by the army following allegations by certain persons that such residents are IPOB members.
The Oyigbo paramount ruler, who condemned the ongoing indiscriminate arrests through a popular radio station in Port Harcourt, called on the army to discontinue such an exercise that is based on hearsay, adding that some persons in the area could use the opportunity to punish their perceived enemies by accusing them of being IPOB members when they are not, and then bringing the army to arrest them.
Eze Mike Nwaji pointed out that the real IPOB members who perpetrated the crimes during the protest have run away from Oyigbo to avoid being caught, hence the need for the army to avoid being used by some persons to punish innocent residents of the area.
The Oyigbo monarch also explained that the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, did not order for house to house arrest of IPOB members but only banned their activities in the state.
But speaking to TPCN on Tuesday, some of the residents blamed the Oyigbo paramount ruler for keeping quiet when their rights were being abused by the security agents during the 24-hour curfew imposed on the area by Governor Wike.
They argued that if the paramount ruler had spoken against the actions of the security agents, especially the army, during that period, they would have exercised some restraint in the way they treated the residents of Oyigbo, accusing the monarch of complicity through silence.
Ogbonna Okoh, a trader, lamented: “Why did it take him this long before cautioning the army, after a lot of people have suffered so much in their hands? Did he not hear what they were doing during that curfew time – how they were arresting and beating people and even shooting gun anyhow? Instead of him to call them to order, was he not defending them, saying that the army are only looking for their guns, that anybody holding them should bring them to him to give the army. That is why they treated the innocent people that way and some people even died because of stray bullet.
“If he has called them to order that time, may be some of those people would have been alive now because the soldiers will respect him since he is the king and our father. Well, thank God he has started talking, only that he delayed so much. Let the soldiers listen to him and stop all this arrest of innocent citizens. I also believe that the criminals who did this thing have run away because they will be afraid of staying here. They can even pass through the bush and run, that is criminals for you. The people who are here now are people who are doing one business or the other, and they did not do anything, that’s why they’re not afraid to stay here because clear conscience fears no accusation.
“The soldiers should know this because they’re well educated people. Not that somebody will come and tell them that so so and so is IPOB member and without doing proper investigation to know if it is true, you come and arrest the person. You don’t know if the person accusing him just hates him or whether they’re quarreling and because of that quarrel he decides to punish him with army. It’s not good.”
A keke driver in the area, who also spoke to TPCN, condemned the indiscriminate arrest.
“People are suffering for what they did not do. The criminals have run and the innocent people are suffering. Why the paramount ruler didn’t tell them this since? Let him advise them to stop it before they kill everybody here,” he said.
When TPCN went to see the paramount ruler to get his reaction to the residents’ comments, the security men at the gate of his palace said he was not around.
