Police attack journalists, 4 armed officers walk THE RAZOR reporter out on CP’s order

BY Our correspondent

Some policemen at the Anambra Police Headquarters, Amawbia, Awka South Local Government Area, on Monday demonstrated manifest hate and aggression on journalists invited for a press conference by the command.

The invitation for the conference sent to the journalists severally and jointly reads:

Good evening, I humbly wish to invite you for a press briefing on Monday, 08/1/2024 by 1 pm at Police Command Headquarters, Amawabia, Awka.

DSP Ikenga Tochukwu
PRO, Anambra State Police Command.

Thank you for all your support and Happy New Year.

4/1/2024

By 1pm, the journalists had gathered in their numbers at the command, standing in the scotching sun as there were no seats provided

Trouble began when a plainclothes policeman came out from a cubicle- looking office and started harassing the journalists for standing in front his office.

Before explanation could come from the journalists that there were no other place for them to stand, the policeman had mobilized his colleagues to chase away the journalists, which some journalists frowned at.

The policemen moved to one of the lady journalists who was the only person sitting in the crowd because of her health condition.

“Madam leave here. I say leave here immediately or I use force on you, one of the police officers roared.

” Officer,I newly had surgery on my leg. Please,allow me to stay here,” the lady journalist pleaded to the policemen, to no avail.

Without further explanation, one of the police officers started pulling the lady’s chair to relocate her, apparently to the sun.

At this juncture, the journalists started rebuking that particular officer for his attitude to the lady.

One of the journalists called the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Tochukwu Ikenga, who was upstairs, on telephone to notify him of the situation.

The PPRO sued for peace and said the CP would soon come down for the briefing.

“I’m sorry about that. The CP will soon come down for the briefing. I’m sorry about that ,” the PPRO said.

At about 2.45 pm, the CP, Aderemi Adeoye, walked down to address the journalists with a brief apology for the delay.

While the CP was talking, the correspondent of the RAZOR NEWSPAPER, who did not know the earlier brush with the policemen, strayed to a shade where the hostile policemen had earlier chased away journalists.

Before, one could say Jack Robinson, the policemen descended on him, shouting: Go away from this place; Go away, are you stupid”.

The RAZOR reporter replied: I won’t go anywhere. You can’t force me to go and stand in that scorching sun. I won’t do it, I’m a human being,”.

While the voices were going up, the CP ordered that the RAZOR reporter be walked out of the premises.

“Walk him out of this place. Whoever he is, I don’t care, I say walk him out of this place, the CP ordered.

Like lightning, no fewer than four policemen with arms herded the RAZOR reporter out of the premises. Some journalists also left the place in solidarity to the RAZOR reporter.

Speaking later, the RAZOR reporter said, “I was feeling unwell, and was looking for a shade, so I didn’t want to stand under the sun, but everywhere I went, I was chased out.

“I even went upstairs close to Ikenga’s ( PPRO’s) office and was chased away. I now went to the side not too close to the CP’s, but I was told the instruction was for us to stay downstairs. The same downstairs I was chased away from.

“So, I went down stairs and stayed in one corner, and a police man told me the instruction was for us to go under the sun, so I resisted.That was all.

Our correspondent learnt that the CP would later cancel the press briefing apparently because of the tensed atmosphere.