The Federal Road Safety
Corps (FRSC) has called for the arrest and prosecution of those involved in the
recent shooting of two of its officials in Abia.
The Public Education
Officer and spokesman of the Corps, Mr Bisi Kazeem, made the call on Tuesday
while reacting to the reported dismissal of a Police Corporal, Iroh Orji, over
the incident.
Orji, who was an orderly
to the Speaker of Abia House of Assembly, allegedly pulled the trigger on the
FRSC officials at their duty post on July 15.
The state Commissioner
of Police, Mr Leye Oyebade, announced Orji’s dismissal from the Force on
Monday, saying that he was found guilty of the offence during an orderly room
trial.
Kazeem told pressmen in
Abuja that the policeman’s dismissal was a welcomed development.
He, however, called for
the criminal prosecution of Orji and others involved in the shooting, including
the Speaker, his wife and an operative of the Department of State Services
(DSS).
He said: “The corporal’s
dismissal is a welcomed development, which further shows that the police have
zero tolerance for acts of indiscipline and lawlessness among their men.
“But, we call on the police to institute
criminal proceedings against him and others involved in the act of criminality
against our men.
“We have made this demand to the Director of
DSS in Abia, who said he had made recommendation to headquarters for
disciplinary action against the operative.
“The director said the
recommendation had to be verified and approved by headquarters before action
could be taken.’’
Kazeem said that FRSC
had also written to the police command in the state seeking the arrest of the
speaker, his wife and the driver of the vehicle involved in the incident.
The speaker, Mr
Chikwendu Kalu, is alleged to have ordered the shooting of the FRSC officials,
but he has denied the allegation.
Recall that the incident
occurred at Arungwa Junction (near Aba) on the Enugu-Port-Harcourt highway.
Kalu’s wife, Victoria,
was said to be travelling to Aba when the FRSC men flagged down her vehicle and
attempted to book her for seatbelt violation.
A heated argument ensued
during which she allegedly pounced on the road safety officials with the help
of a female DSS operative, who was travelling with her.
Eyewitnesses said that
the woman called her husband, who arrived at the scene and allegedly ordered
his orderly to shoot the FRSC officials.
When the speaker visited
the victims at the hospital the next day, he was said to have been denied
access into the ward where the FRSC officials were receiving treatment.
One of the wounded
officials said “I saw him at the scene. What if we had died, he would have come
to see our corpses.”
But, the speaker blamed
the incident on “over-zealousness’’ of the security officers involved.
“I strongly condemn any
over-zealousness on the side of any security personnel, be it anyone, not to
now talk of being the Police, FRSC, the Army and Department of State Services.
“I think I will be the last person to
encourage it because it doesn’t augur well with state and the country at
large,’’ he said.
Tags
Society