Police brutalize The Guardian, ThisDay and News Telegraph Circulation Officers in Rivers

BY IBRAHIM BAKARE

Some members Rivers State Police Command seemed to have transferred their aggression to members to members of the Press as they suddenly become hostile and an Identity Card of pressman infuriates them.

The Guardian Newspaper’s Circulation officer in Rivers, Mr. Andortan Romeo, his Thisday and News Telegraph counterpart, Abel Jumbo and Joe Etim were Monday attacked by Officers of the  Eagle Crack Unit of the Mile One Police Division  while carrying out their official duties of the distribution newspapers.

According to the victims, as soon  they introduced themselves to the Officers and displayed their identity cards as confirmation, the Policemen got infuriated and started hitting them, torturing them alleging that the media were carrying fake news against the Police that is why there have facing attacks.

All appeals to them that their problem has nothing to do with the mainstream media like ThisDay and The Guardian newspapers further infuriated them.

According to Romeo, “We showed them our identity cards and they got infuriated, started beating and torturing us, they asked us to knee down and later, took Joe to their station to cut grass”.

Collaborating Romeo’s statement, Jumbo said, ” I have not been able to access my office for the past five days now. The E-crack police officers at the Mile one police have been torturing us, despite showing them our Identity cards as the media.”

“They were so angry with us saying, we have been reporting fake news against them, after beating us, they asked some of us to knee down for several hours while they took some to their station to cut grass”.

Similarly, Journalists whose offices are mostly located in the Mile One Axis of Port Harcourt have not been able to access their Offices since the curfew was imposed in the area by Governor Nyesom Wike of due to targeted disturbances by suspected members Indigenous People of Biafra,IPOB.

For about a week since the Curfew started Policemen of Mile One, the infamous Eagle Crack Unit refused to give exemption to Journalists to have access despite valid identification

Contacted, the Spokesman of the State Police Command, SP Nnamdi Omoni, said he was very busy to look into the matter and later requested that the victims see him in his office.