- By Halimah Olamide
A man identified as Wildred Ezike, has reportedly been paralysed after some suspected task force men attacked him with pestle over a petition he allegedly wrote against illegal revenue collection in the state.
It was not known how the man got to the room where he was being tortured, but a video of the torture seen by the NPO Reports showed the man helpless on the floor and being hit by pestle in his joints with blood coming out of his body.
The man, who was pleading for mercy, and spoke in Igbo, was ignored by his attackers who pinned him down to prevent resistance as they hit him in critical parts of his body to apparently with the intention to incapacitate him.
NPO Reports learnt that the man had written a petition against illegal revenue collection in his area by some people.
But another version claimed that Ezike was being punished after his brother said that revenues collected by him were remitted to Ezike prompting the officials of the state task force to go after him.
Contacted, the Force Public Relation Officer of the police, Oluluyiwa Adejobi, advised the man to lodge a complaint at the Zone 13 of the Nigerian Police or the office of the Inspector General Police.
“Let him put up a petition to the office of the AIG zone 13, or office of the IGP in abuja, or FCID Annex, Enugu. We have many offices that can take it up if he doesn’t want to stay in Anambra.
“Justice is certain, after investigation. Even if the taskforce man must apply minimum force, it must be in line with the provisions of the law.”
Meanwhile, the Anambra state government has vowed to ensure that those torturing Ezike are punished.
Reacting to the development, the state Commissioner for Homeland Affairs, Chikodi Anarah, said: “We will punish erring SASA operatives.
“I have been alerted on the viral video on the arrest and manhandling of one Wilfred Ezike, also known as Mgbiligba by SASA operatives. I really feel bad that an incident of that nature took place.
“It is true that some people are unrepentantly committed to various criminalities on the basis of which innocent citizens remain in miserable conditions running their legitimate day to day life, but we must handle human beings according to prescriptions of the law, no matter their offense.