Juliana Francis
Members of the Edo Civil Society Organisations (EDOSCO), Benin City, Edo State, has condemned the act of the military getting involved in civil cases or trying to take over the work of the police in the state.
A member of the civil rights group, Osazee Edigin, said that soldiers at the 4th Brigade have detained Joshua Afegbua, over a civil matter.
He narrated: “Joshua Afegbua, a car dealer, received a payment of N2m to deliver a car expected to get from Ibadan. On his way to Ibadan to get the vehicle, he started receiving debit alerts on his phone. He couldn’t stop the same due to the poor network on the expressway. He instructed his wife to quickly get to the bank to stop it. The wife went to the nearby branch of the bank to stop further debits but they (fraudsters) succeeded in removing the sum of an N1million from his account.
“Upon getting to Ibadan, he went to the bank to get a printout of the account statement and returned to Benin City to lodge a formal complaint at the police station. The car dealer informed the buyer about what had happened who in turn informed his sister called Princess, an official of Correctional Service based in Benin City. After lodging the complaint at Zone 5, Princess asked that they go to the 4th Brigade together. As soon as they entered, Joshua was detained on the 9th of September, 2022. The army had requested that he either return the money or make available the vehicle before he would be released from their detention. The army in Edo State seems to have solved all the insecurity issues in Edo State to have the luxury of time to be dabbling into civil matters ordinarily should the preoccupation of the police. The victim detained in the 4th Brigade over a civil matter has been released. He was asked if he knew someone in a high place that he could call. They didn’t have any choice but to set him free when Abuja responded. When we escalate, the oppressors usually take off.”
Edigin stated that it was necessary for Edo State Citizens, and Nigerians at large to know their fundamental rights and demand them.
