| “Nigeria is ... but a child, who is intelligent, endowed, gifted but wayward" Professor Chinua Achebe |
| Kenya Time to Heal? |
 |
By Everest Amaefule
with agency report
Published: Tuesday,
27 May 2008
Nigerians are the
most educated
immigrants living in
the United States of
America, population
surveys published in
the Houston
Chronicle has shown.
According to the
report, Nigerian
immigrants have the
highest levels of
education both in the
city of Houston and
the entire country
surpassing whites
and Asians,
according to census
data bolstered by an
analysis of 13 annual
Houston-area surveys
conducted by Rice
University.
The report, quoting
the 2006 American
Community Survey,
said 17 per cent of all
Nigerians in the
United States held
master’s degrees
while four per cent
had a doctorate. In
addition, 37 per cent
had bachelor’s
degrees.
In comparison, eight
per cent of the white
population in the U.S.
had master’s
degrees, according to
the census survey.
And only one per
cent held doctorates.
About 19 per cent of
white residents had
bachelor’s degrees.
Asians came closest
to the Nigerians with
12 per cent holding
master’s degrees and
three per cent having
doctorates.
| Opinions |
National Assembly, Abuja
Nigeria, like other national
monuments, taken from a safe
distance by a tourist.
What does Aso Rock, the
State House look like?
Unveiling Aso Rock will be part
of removal of the vestiges of
many years of military
brigandage in that country.
Nigeria, like other national
monuments, taken from a safe
distance by a tourist.
What does Aso Rock, the
State House look like?
Unveiling Aso Rock will be part
of removal of the vestiges of
many years of military
brigandage in that country.
Mwai Kibaki & Raila Odinga.
Does either of them
deserve to preside over
Kenya at this time?
Does either of them
deserve to preside over
Kenya at this time?
OPINION
In my opinion and I believe, in
the thinking of every
right-minded non participant in
this waste of innocent lives,
Kibaki and Odinga as well as
every Kenyan who remotely or
otherwise has been
instrumental to this mayhem,
have no moral right to play any
role whatsoever in the running
of the Kenyan nation at this
time.
This view was buttressed by a
respected mediator in the crisis
in this February 8, 2008 report
of the AP.
Former U.N. chief Kofi
Annan, who is mediating talks
between Kenya's political
rivals, said Friday that claims
of a power-sharing agreement
aimed at ending weeks of
post-election bloodshed were
premature
"I sincerely hope ... we will
complete our work by early
next week," Annan told
reporters.
Earlier an opposition
lawmaker claimed a deal had
been reached. But Annan said
that "was jumping the gun."
Seeing these two gentlemen
shake hands and hug each
other when Kenyans are being
hacked to death in a crisis their
greed and avarice have done
nothing to stem, to my mind is
an insult to say the least on the
intellect of the world
community who love Kenyans.
They and their known
lieutenants should all back out
and allow a well respected
member of the Kenyan
politically remote minority
group to head the government
in Nairobi under strict UN and
AU supervision, to steer the
badly jolted populace back to
reconciliation and a credible
election in the best possible
time.
Power-obsessed Kenyans in or
outside government who have
contributed to the death of
more than a thousand people
(and still counting) must be
brought to book to avoid a
copy-cat effect in other
African democracies like
Nigeria and South Africa, with
far from resolved leadership
intrigues. Put simply, Kibaki's
term is over, while Odinga
blew his chances, at least for
now.
While they may not have
ordered tribal killings, their
actions and reactions only
exacerbated the ugly
chain-reactions.
In my opinion and I believe, in
the thinking of every
right-minded non participant in
this waste of innocent lives,
Kibaki and Odinga as well as
every Kenyan who remotely or
otherwise has been
instrumental to this mayhem,
have no moral right to play any
role whatsoever in the running
of the Kenyan nation at this
time.
This view was buttressed by a
respected mediator in the crisis
in this February 8, 2008 report
of the AP.
Former U.N. chief Kofi
Annan, who is mediating talks
between Kenya's political
rivals, said Friday that claims
of a power-sharing agreement
aimed at ending weeks of
post-election bloodshed were
premature
"I sincerely hope ... we will
complete our work by early
next week," Annan told
reporters.
Earlier an opposition
lawmaker claimed a deal had
been reached. But Annan said
that "was jumping the gun."
Seeing these two gentlemen
shake hands and hug each
other when Kenyans are being
hacked to death in a crisis their
greed and avarice have done
nothing to stem, to my mind is
an insult to say the least on the
intellect of the world
community who love Kenyans.
They and their known
lieutenants should all back out
and allow a well respected
member of the Kenyan
politically remote minority
group to head the government
in Nairobi under strict UN and
AU supervision, to steer the
badly jolted populace back to
reconciliation and a credible
election in the best possible
time.
Power-obsessed Kenyans in or
outside government who have
contributed to the death of
more than a thousand people
(and still counting) must be
brought to book to avoid a
copy-cat effect in other
African democracies like
Nigeria and South Africa, with
far from resolved leadership
intrigues. Put simply, Kibaki's
term is over, while Odinga
blew his chances, at least for
now.
While they may not have
ordered tribal killings, their
actions and reactions only
exacerbated the ugly
chain-reactions.
Three-in-one tragedy
By Ayodele Ale and Sesan Olufowobi
Punch
Published: Saturday, 16 Feb 2008
On Tuesday, friends and relations had a hectic time consoling Iyabo
Emida, the bereaved mother of 16-year-old Taiwo, who was shot dead
by the police recently.
“I want Nigerians to help me ask the police why they had to do this
to me,” she wailed. “Is it because I am poor and there is no one to
defend my rights? They would not even allow my son to finish the
food he was eating before they sent him to the grave!”
Iyabo is not only mourning her son’s untimely death, she is also
struggling to raise the sum of N70,000, the amount authorities of
Lagos University Teaching Hospital have demanded as a condition for
releasing her son’s corpse. Besides, her two other children are in
serious trouble. One was hit in the eye by the police and had to be
hospitalised while the other’s hand was caught by the bullets. At their
No 3, Iju Road, Agege, Lagos residence on Tuesday, relations made
frantic phone calls in search of funds, but all they got were promises.
The plight of the family began in the evening of Wednesday February
6, 2008. According to eyewitness accounts, Taiwo and his sibblings
were having their dinner in front of their residence around 10 pm when
a detachment of policemen from Area G Command, Ogba, Lagos, led
by a man popularly known as Baba 70, arrived in a police vehicle.
Recalling the events that led to Taiwo’s death, his elder brother, Saliu,
said, “Immediately the policemen who said they were on night patrol
came, they asked us to enter their vehicle, but we told them that as
they could see, we were eating. We asked them to allow us to finish
our food but they refused. They started kicking us and pushing us into
their vehicle, threatening to shoot us. We begged that they should
allow us to enter the house and tell our parents about our imminent
departure.
“We were still on this when Baba 70 fired shots that caught Taiwo in
the stomach and also caught Sunday (one of Taiwo’s elder brothers) in
the hand. Taiwo fell down instantly while Sunday held his hand and
started crying.”
According to Saliu, on realising what happened, the policemen
attempted to hop into their vehicles and run away, but Saliu held Baba
70’s uniform.
The ensuing cacophony attracted the attention of Taiwo’s parents and
neighbours. Sensing that he might be lynched, Baba 70 hit Saliu with
the butt of his gun and he fell. The policeman ran and joined his
colleagues in the vehicle and they zoomed off.
Confusion ensued as frantic efforts were made to save Taiwo’s life as
he reeled in pain and was losing much blood.
“That night, we took him to two private hospitals but they rejected
him. We took him to the Ikeja General Hospital, but the health
personnel on duty told us that they had no bed space. So, they
referred us to LUTH where he was eventually admitted,” Saliu said.
Taiwo struggled with death for four days, but he eventually passed
away on Sunday, February 10, 2008.
Immediately Taiwo died, friends and family members headed for the
Area G Police Command Headquarters, Ogba to protest his death.
“They did not allow us to enter the gates when we told them that the
boy they shot was dead,” Saliu recalled.
But the bereaved mother was said to have forced her way through the
gates, crying and shouting at the top of her voice that they had
destroyed her hope. Taiwo’s friends were also said to have threatened
fire and brimstone. But the policemen on duty responded with tear gas
and chased the protesters. In the ensuing melee, Saliu was hit in the
eye with the butt of a gun and had to be rushed to the hospital.
Saliu disclosed that the Investigating Police Officer in charge of the
case, Augustine Obosie, told them that the matter was being
investigated and that the trigger-happy policeman had been arrested.
“We find that difficult to believe because they ought to have brought
him out and showed him to us if he was actually arrested” a family
member, who sought anonymity, said.
Iyabo said as at Tuesday, the police had not sent anybody to
commiserate with the family. “They have not deemed it necessary to
sympathise with us because they know that there is nothing we can
do. But they forgot that God will fight for us,” she said.
However, it was gathered that Obosie gave the family the sum of N20,
000 through the Baale of Agege for the burial of the victim. “They
asked us to use it to buy a piece of land where the boy could be
buried. But how far can that go when the hospital is asking for N70,
000 before they could release Taiwo’s corpse to us? That is why we
have not been able to bury the boy,” a family member said.
As at Tuesday, Taiwo’s father had not been informed about his son’s
death as he had been down with a strange illness for three years. “He
is at Sango-Otta, Ogun State, where he is being treated. He cannot do
anything by himself. He has to be assisted,” Iyabo said, stressing that
the children had dropped out of school because of the ill-health of
their breadwinner.
Iyabo said, “I sell bitter kola in front of our house at Pen Cinema,
Agege to make ends meet. And the late Taiwo, whose twin brother
died at a tender age, also helped the family with his shoe mending
business. He was such a humble boy. He could not hurt a fly.”
The acting spokesman of the Lagos State Police Command, Mr.
Olumide Jimoh, said the police was aware of the claims of the victims.
“But you cannot accept all these claims on their face value, so the
Commissioner of Police has said that the matter should be properly
investigated to know whether the policeman was only acting in self-
defence or he was being unnecessarily aggressive. You can be sure that
justice will be done at the end of the day.”
Asked why one of the protesters was being detained by the police,
Jimoh said, “I am not aware of that, but I will investigate.”
By Ayodele Ale and Sesan Olufowobi
Punch
Published: Saturday, 16 Feb 2008
On Tuesday, friends and relations had a hectic time consoling Iyabo
Emida, the bereaved mother of 16-year-old Taiwo, who was shot dead
by the police recently.
“I want Nigerians to help me ask the police why they had to do this
to me,” she wailed. “Is it because I am poor and there is no one to
defend my rights? They would not even allow my son to finish the
food he was eating before they sent him to the grave!”
Iyabo is not only mourning her son’s untimely death, she is also
struggling to raise the sum of N70,000, the amount authorities of
Lagos University Teaching Hospital have demanded as a condition for
releasing her son’s corpse. Besides, her two other children are in
serious trouble. One was hit in the eye by the police and had to be
hospitalised while the other’s hand was caught by the bullets. At their
No 3, Iju Road, Agege, Lagos residence on Tuesday, relations made
frantic phone calls in search of funds, but all they got were promises.
The plight of the family began in the evening of Wednesday February
6, 2008. According to eyewitness accounts, Taiwo and his sibblings
were having their dinner in front of their residence around 10 pm when
a detachment of policemen from Area G Command, Ogba, Lagos, led
by a man popularly known as Baba 70, arrived in a police vehicle.
Recalling the events that led to Taiwo’s death, his elder brother, Saliu,
said, “Immediately the policemen who said they were on night patrol
came, they asked us to enter their vehicle, but we told them that as
they could see, we were eating. We asked them to allow us to finish
our food but they refused. They started kicking us and pushing us into
their vehicle, threatening to shoot us. We begged that they should
allow us to enter the house and tell our parents about our imminent
departure.
“We were still on this when Baba 70 fired shots that caught Taiwo in
the stomach and also caught Sunday (one of Taiwo’s elder brothers) in
the hand. Taiwo fell down instantly while Sunday held his hand and
started crying.”
According to Saliu, on realising what happened, the policemen
attempted to hop into their vehicles and run away, but Saliu held Baba
70’s uniform.
The ensuing cacophony attracted the attention of Taiwo’s parents and
neighbours. Sensing that he might be lynched, Baba 70 hit Saliu with
the butt of his gun and he fell. The policeman ran and joined his
colleagues in the vehicle and they zoomed off.
Confusion ensued as frantic efforts were made to save Taiwo’s life as
he reeled in pain and was losing much blood.
“That night, we took him to two private hospitals but they rejected
him. We took him to the Ikeja General Hospital, but the health
personnel on duty told us that they had no bed space. So, they
referred us to LUTH where he was eventually admitted,” Saliu said.
Taiwo struggled with death for four days, but he eventually passed
away on Sunday, February 10, 2008.
Immediately Taiwo died, friends and family members headed for the
Area G Police Command Headquarters, Ogba to protest his death.
“They did not allow us to enter the gates when we told them that the
boy they shot was dead,” Saliu recalled.
But the bereaved mother was said to have forced her way through the
gates, crying and shouting at the top of her voice that they had
destroyed her hope. Taiwo’s friends were also said to have threatened
fire and brimstone. But the policemen on duty responded with tear gas
and chased the protesters. In the ensuing melee, Saliu was hit in the
eye with the butt of a gun and had to be rushed to the hospital.
Saliu disclosed that the Investigating Police Officer in charge of the
case, Augustine Obosie, told them that the matter was being
investigated and that the trigger-happy policeman had been arrested.
“We find that difficult to believe because they ought to have brought
him out and showed him to us if he was actually arrested” a family
member, who sought anonymity, said.
Iyabo said as at Tuesday, the police had not sent anybody to
commiserate with the family. “They have not deemed it necessary to
sympathise with us because they know that there is nothing we can
do. But they forgot that God will fight for us,” she said.
However, it was gathered that Obosie gave the family the sum of N20,
000 through the Baale of Agege for the burial of the victim. “They
asked us to use it to buy a piece of land where the boy could be
buried. But how far can that go when the hospital is asking for N70,
000 before they could release Taiwo’s corpse to us? That is why we
have not been able to bury the boy,” a family member said.
As at Tuesday, Taiwo’s father had not been informed about his son’s
death as he had been down with a strange illness for three years. “He
is at Sango-Otta, Ogun State, where he is being treated. He cannot do
anything by himself. He has to be assisted,” Iyabo said, stressing that
the children had dropped out of school because of the ill-health of
their breadwinner.
Iyabo said, “I sell bitter kola in front of our house at Pen Cinema,
Agege to make ends meet. And the late Taiwo, whose twin brother
died at a tender age, also helped the family with his shoe mending
business. He was such a humble boy. He could not hurt a fly.”
The acting spokesman of the Lagos State Police Command, Mr.
Olumide Jimoh, said the police was aware of the claims of the victims.
“But you cannot accept all these claims on their face value, so the
Commissioner of Police has said that the matter should be properly
investigated to know whether the policeman was only acting in self-
defence or he was being unnecessarily aggressive. You can be sure that
justice will be done at the end of the day.”
Asked why one of the protesters was being detained by the police,
Jimoh said, “I am not aware of that, but I will investigate.”
 |
At a recent preview of the documentary
film, Lagos Koolhaas, named after the
renowned Dutch Architect who researched
Lagos Nigeria as the fastest growing city in
the world, students of the Northwestern
University in the Chicago immediate
northern neighbor of Evanston, gasped
when a public transport operator made the
remark, "The Police are our problem in
Lagos." They found the statement totally
confusing. Even though stories of Police
high-handedness and abuse of office are
common place in Chicago's history, the
oxymoron of the Police being the #1
problem of a country was just a bit too
flustering to them. Not any more flattering
was the account of a young street hawker in
the film that his younger brother had been
missing since he went hawking goods at
dusk 18 months earlier. As soon as the
young folks knew I was a Lagosian, it
behoved on me to explain how the
otherwise custodian of the people's security
have come to be the worst enemy of
Nigerians. Not an enviable job I had to do
accepting (because I 'm too proud to lie)
that our Police back home are inept.
Nigerian dailies are awash with reports
ranging from poor judgements, inactivity,
dereliction,official corruption to brazen
atrocities from men and women in uniform.
We are forced to backtrack from our
hitherto policy of emphasising the positive
deeds of the Nigerian polity for the simple
reason that these are daily becoming rare
and far apart indeed. Moreover we need to
encourage public discuss on these
shortcomings, as it does seem some of these
failings are borne out of sheer ignorance.
Thus we start a series on bizarre reports.
Please join in reflecting on them.
film, Lagos Koolhaas, named after the
renowned Dutch Architect who researched
Lagos Nigeria as the fastest growing city in
the world, students of the Northwestern
University in the Chicago immediate
northern neighbor of Evanston, gasped
when a public transport operator made the
remark, "The Police are our problem in
Lagos." They found the statement totally
confusing. Even though stories of Police
high-handedness and abuse of office are
common place in Chicago's history, the
oxymoron of the Police being the #1
problem of a country was just a bit too
flustering to them. Not any more flattering
was the account of a young street hawker in
the film that his younger brother had been
missing since he went hawking goods at
dusk 18 months earlier. As soon as the
young folks knew I was a Lagosian, it
behoved on me to explain how the
otherwise custodian of the people's security
have come to be the worst enemy of
Nigerians. Not an enviable job I had to do
accepting (because I 'm too proud to lie)
that our Police back home are inept.
Nigerian dailies are awash with reports
ranging from poor judgements, inactivity,
dereliction,official corruption to brazen
atrocities from men and women in uniform.
We are forced to backtrack from our
hitherto policy of emphasising the positive
deeds of the Nigerian polity for the simple
reason that these are daily becoming rare
and far apart indeed. Moreover we need to
encourage public discuss on these
shortcomings, as it does seem some of these
failings are borne out of sheer ignorance.
Thus we start a series on bizarre reports.
Please join in reflecting on them.
| BackTrack |
 |
Below is a news story
from Nigeria, which to our
mind, heightens the urgent
need for decorum, order,
training and retraining as well
as accountability in the
country's public life. Existing
institutions put in place by
government for public
probity are both inadequate
and inept as seen in the rising
incidence of avoidable loss of
human lives and property in
clearly avoidable
circumstances. VNANews
still insists that the Nigerian
Congress has men and
women professional enough
to investigate these rampant
shortcomings and make
legislations for the executive
arm of government to put
proper, enduring structures
in place.
The story:
Four Killed, As
Dockworkers Protest
Dele Aderibigbe and
Folashade Alli, Lagos -
15.03.2008
Tribune
ALL business activities at the
Apapa Ports Complex in
Lagos came to sudden halt
on Friday as dockworkers
vent their anger to protest the
sudden death by crane of
two of their members.
The sad event, however, led
to the death of two others,
one of them said to be ‘a
motor boy’, when an
ambulance dispatched to rush
the victims to the hospital, in
the confusion that followed,
lost control, and allegedly
killed two persons at the
scene and injured two others.
Eyewitnesses told the
Saturday Tribune that trouble
started at Ports’ Berth 10,
under the management of the
ENL, after the cable of a ship’
s crane, the Green Reefers,
snapped tumbling down a
huge faulty crane which
instantly killed 2
dockworkers on the spot.
One of them was reportedly
loading frozen fish, while the
other which saw his death
coming, could not run away
from the tumbling avalanche.
The situation, according to
the sources, however only
worsened when an
ambulance that was sent for
and which came to pick the
dead, also killed two other
persons and injured three,
one of them, critically.
The ambulance was
subsequently set ablaze after
which the dockworkers went
violent, attacked ENL offices
and properties, vandalising
office equipment and cars
before bringing all business
activities to a halt.
The Commissioner of Police
Port Athority (PAP), Mr. J.
O. Uzuagbunam, told
journalists that the death,
though sad, was an accident.
from Nigeria, which to our
mind, heightens the urgent
need for decorum, order,
training and retraining as well
as accountability in the
country's public life. Existing
institutions put in place by
government for public
probity are both inadequate
and inept as seen in the rising
incidence of avoidable loss of
human lives and property in
clearly avoidable
circumstances. VNANews
still insists that the Nigerian
Congress has men and
women professional enough
to investigate these rampant
shortcomings and make
legislations for the executive
arm of government to put
proper, enduring structures
in place.
The story:
Four Killed, As
Dockworkers Protest
Dele Aderibigbe and
Folashade Alli, Lagos -
15.03.2008
Tribune
ALL business activities at the
Apapa Ports Complex in
Lagos came to sudden halt
on Friday as dockworkers
vent their anger to protest the
sudden death by crane of
two of their members.
The sad event, however, led
to the death of two others,
one of them said to be ‘a
motor boy’, when an
ambulance dispatched to rush
the victims to the hospital, in
the confusion that followed,
lost control, and allegedly
killed two persons at the
scene and injured two others.
Eyewitnesses told the
Saturday Tribune that trouble
started at Ports’ Berth 10,
under the management of the
ENL, after the cable of a ship’
s crane, the Green Reefers,
snapped tumbling down a
huge faulty crane which
instantly killed 2
dockworkers on the spot.
One of them was reportedly
loading frozen fish, while the
other which saw his death
coming, could not run away
from the tumbling avalanche.
The situation, according to
the sources, however only
worsened when an
ambulance that was sent for
and which came to pick the
dead, also killed two other
persons and injured three,
one of them, critically.
The ambulance was
subsequently set ablaze after
which the dockworkers went
violent, attacked ENL offices
and properties, vandalising
office equipment and cars
before bringing all business
activities to a halt.
The Commissioner of Police
Port Athority (PAP), Mr. J.
O. Uzuagbunam, told
journalists that the death,
though sad, was an accident.
| Straighten-Up Time in Nigeria? |
Police Chief says Stolen Car not
Recovered 'cause it was a new Car
Thursday, 03 April 2008
USERS of new cars are responsible for their fate before
armed robbers, who are on a relentless mission to snatch
those vehicles. A police chief confirmed this much in a car
robbery that should raise more concerns, if we were not
already benumbed from hearing many incredulous things
around us.
The Director of the State Security Service, SSS, in Delta
State lost his car to armed robbers. They snatched it from a
driver who was taking the director’s wife to church, and
shot the driver for failing to surrender the car keys quickly.
He survived and he is the police’s only suspect, though
interrogating him produced nothing useful.
Expectations were that the police would find the vehicle,
considering the owner’s profile. Some also thought such a
vehicle would bear security gadgets to encumber any
intruders.
Both positions have been proved wrong. Perhaps, more
troubling is the explanation of the State’s police chief for
the non-recovery of the vehicle that was snatched two
months ago.
“The issue is that that vehicle was very new and there is no
mark on the body at all,” Mr. Jacob Oshiomogho, acting
State Commissioner of Police told reporters as he
showcased 32 recovered vehicles, out of the 36 snatched in
the past three months.
“Such 406 cars are difficult to get because they are very
fast and they can easily escape even before one hears about
it”.
At a recovery rate of 88.88 per cent, Mr. Oshiomogho and
his team must be doing a great job getting back stolen cars.
What is uncertain is the type of vehicles they recover, given
his attitude to new cars without marks on the body at all.
Mr. Oshiomogho makes it sound as if it is an offence to use
a new vehicle, especially if it is without dents. Once those
types of vehicles are snatched, he does not think the police
has a chance of recovering them.
This attitude would be a source of concern to owners of
new vehicles. Many of these vehicles are acquired through
various schemes that the banks are running. Others get
them as official vehicles from their places of employment.
If we are to follow the police chief’s logic, owners of these
vehicles are inviting a certain doomful fate to themselves
simply by procuring these vehicles, especially now the
police has warned about the safety of these acquisitions.
The comment diminishes the police, casts it in search for
new excuses to cover its performance. Snatchers of the
vehicle committed crimes of armed robbery and brought
bodily harm to the driver. Mr. Oshiomogho knows this
elementary issue.
Does the state of the vehicle make their conduct less
criminal? Should the police blame its flagging ability to
confront criminals on Nigerians buying new vehicles? If the
vehicle of the SSS director is taken and cannot be found,
then we are all on our own.
This could be what Mr. Oshiomogho meant, yet he failed to
tell us the cars for these times.
Read our Comments
Recovered 'cause it was a new Car
Thursday, 03 April 2008
USERS of new cars are responsible for their fate before
armed robbers, who are on a relentless mission to snatch
those vehicles. A police chief confirmed this much in a car
robbery that should raise more concerns, if we were not
already benumbed from hearing many incredulous things
around us.
The Director of the State Security Service, SSS, in Delta
State lost his car to armed robbers. They snatched it from a
driver who was taking the director’s wife to church, and
shot the driver for failing to surrender the car keys quickly.
He survived and he is the police’s only suspect, though
interrogating him produced nothing useful.
Expectations were that the police would find the vehicle,
considering the owner’s profile. Some also thought such a
vehicle would bear security gadgets to encumber any
intruders.
Both positions have been proved wrong. Perhaps, more
troubling is the explanation of the State’s police chief for
the non-recovery of the vehicle that was snatched two
months ago.
“The issue is that that vehicle was very new and there is no
mark on the body at all,” Mr. Jacob Oshiomogho, acting
State Commissioner of Police told reporters as he
showcased 32 recovered vehicles, out of the 36 snatched in
the past three months.
“Such 406 cars are difficult to get because they are very
fast and they can easily escape even before one hears about
it”.
At a recovery rate of 88.88 per cent, Mr. Oshiomogho and
his team must be doing a great job getting back stolen cars.
What is uncertain is the type of vehicles they recover, given
his attitude to new cars without marks on the body at all.
Mr. Oshiomogho makes it sound as if it is an offence to use
a new vehicle, especially if it is without dents. Once those
types of vehicles are snatched, he does not think the police
has a chance of recovering them.
This attitude would be a source of concern to owners of
new vehicles. Many of these vehicles are acquired through
various schemes that the banks are running. Others get
them as official vehicles from their places of employment.
If we are to follow the police chief’s logic, owners of these
vehicles are inviting a certain doomful fate to themselves
simply by procuring these vehicles, especially now the
police has warned about the safety of these acquisitions.
The comment diminishes the police, casts it in search for
new excuses to cover its performance. Snatchers of the
vehicle committed crimes of armed robbery and brought
bodily harm to the driver. Mr. Oshiomogho knows this
elementary issue.
Does the state of the vehicle make their conduct less
criminal? Should the police blame its flagging ability to
confront criminals on Nigerians buying new vehicles? If the
vehicle of the SSS director is taken and cannot be found,
then we are all on our own.
This could be what Mr. Oshiomogho meant, yet he failed to
tell us the cars for these times.
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