Awka indigenes petition IGP over alleged abuse of powers by police operatives

A group of Awka indigenes in Anambra State, under the aegis of Concerned Citizens of Awka, have petitioned the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Olatunji Disu, over alleged abuse of police powers.

The group accused operatives of the Anambra Police Command of meddling in a decades-long land dispute between the Awka community and their neighbour, Nibo, which had been decided by a court.

In the petition to the IGP, which was signed by the coordinator, Mr Sunday Ezebunamadu, the group condemned what it called arbitrary arrests by police in the matter involving Chief Kenneth Afamefuna Ezekwesili of Umuike village, Awka.

The petitioner disclosed that the claimant to the disputed parcel of land, Chief Ezekwesili has been serially hounded by his co-claimants from Nibo, using police operatives from the Anambra Command, who they suspect to have been compromised.

They lamented that such actions are likely to cause communal war between both communities, when in essence, the police should be a neutral body which should promote peace.

Parts of the petition read: “We, the concerned citizens of Awka in Anambra State, respectfully bring to your attention a matter of grave concern involving alleged abuse of police powers and arbitrary interference in a long-standing land dispute.

“Police officers are taking sides in a civil land dispute already decided at appellate court. We think the law enforcement actions were being used to frustrate enforcement of valid court judgments.

“If these allegations are true, they represent a serious deviation from the constitutional role of the police, which is to maintain peace and not to adjudicate land ownership disputes.

“The people of Awka believe strongly in the rule of law. Allowing court decisions to stand without unlawful interference is essential to maintaining public trust in law enforcement and the justice system.”