Lawrence Nwimo, Awka
No fewer than three commercial tricycle operators are currently hospitalised in Anambra following beatings they allegedly received from men of the State Anti-Touts Squad.
Ikengaonline gathered that the Squad, which was set-up by Governor Chukwuma Soludo to tackle touting brutalised seven tricycle drivers and destroyed 11 vehicles during their recent raid in Awka, the state capital.
Out of the seven that were reportedly brutalised, three are still in the hospitals receiving treatments.
It was gathered that the Anti-Touts squad stormed Unizik keke loading pit and brutalised seven members of Anambra Keke Drivers Forum (AKDF).
One of the drivers at the Unizik pit by Okpuno–Obyokoye, Mr Enerst Iwunor, said the Anti-Touts squad came in a commando style and started beating and shooting randomly.
According to him, the squad came and arrested some of their members, alleging that they were touts collecting money from drivers because they pay N200 every day to the owner of the private Park.
He said that the park in question is a government approved private Park, charging service fee to keke operators.
He stated that some of the arrested members were released by the Anti-Touts squad after paying between N13000, N4000 and N3000 from the victims.
He called on government to urgently call the squad to order to avoid them harassing Keke drivers in the state.
“We are calling on the governor, Prof. Charles Soludo, to do something before the Anti-Touts squad kills Keke drivers in Anambra State.
“We are law abiding citizen, paying our taxes as and when due. These people are representing the government but what they did yesterday was horrible and unfortunate,” he said.
According to him, the Squad should be fighting touts in those areas where they are operating and leave them alone.
He stated that “they are going to make sure that they pay for the damaged windscreens.”
One of the victims who was beaten mercilessly, Mr Obodo Emmanuel, said he was just inside the park when suddenly they stormed on them and started beating everybody and broke his head.
He said they were operating in a private park approved by the government and they just collect N200 from each Keke every day.
According to him, all those the Anti-Touts squad beat up are not touts but Keke drivers and they knew that.
Reacting, the coordinator of Anambra State Anti-Touts squad, Mr Solomon Chukwuebuka, said they were on normal patrol and ran into some touts extorting money from motorists and they ran into the park.
According to him, when they ran into the park, they followed them and they started attacking us, saying they were not touts.
He said: “We were not looking for the Keke drivers, rather touts whom we met at the place collecting money from them. When we reached the place, they stopped us because we came with Keke and two of the touts demanded for money and we arrested one and the second person ran into park and we followed him into the park, they started attacking us with bottles.
“It was their attack that caused me calling for reinforcement. I led the operation, they attacked us with bottles and hit one of my men with stick and he falled down. What do they want, the same people they are complaining about extorting money from them are the same people some of them are protecting.”
