Mrs Alaso Johnbull Obi

By Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt

The Chairman of Asari-Toru local government area, Mrs Alaso Johnbull Obi, has appealed to the Rivers State Judicial Commission of Inquiry on Police brutality, to prevail on the police officers who she claimed had confiscated items belonging to her effects since March 9, 2019 to return them.

According to her, a police team led by one Abu from Mopol 98, seized the items during the 9th March, 2019 Governorship election in the state at a collation centre while she was working as a member of a monitoring team of her party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

She added that some mobile police officers numbering over 10 had stormed the center and barred PDP agents from entering.

The LGA boss said she tried to intervene when a PDP agent was being brutalized, but the mobile police officers descended on her, raining several slaps on her face.

She claimed that she was consequently pushed to the floor while her phone and costly wrist watch were instantly stripped off her by the police officers.

She suggested that Police Officers should be subjected to regular medical checkup as most of them may be under influence of substances such as hard drugs.

She demanded for the return of her phone and wristwatch or a compensation of N350, 000.

“We have to beg before they could allow us into the collation premises. The Police Officers did not allow any PDP agent inside; whoever tried to enter will be beaten severely, handcuffed and thrown into their van. All of a sudden I saw them brutalizing one of the PDP Agent for Constituency 1.

“The guy wanted to hand me over his phone, I went close, before a twinkle of an eye, I was slapped on the face severally, push to the ground, my phone, wristwatch were stripped off me immediately. It was just like an armed robbery attack. It was a real dark day for Asari-Toru local government area.

“These Police officers need to be cautioned, the way I see some of them, it is like they are on hard drugs which torment them because their actions are inhumane, they need to take them to rehabilitation centers. Government has to put eyes on whoever is to be recruited into the police and the entire force, because their attitudes toward civilians are terrible,” she said.