Men of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Anambra State brutalised a journalist, Izunna Okafor, on Saturday, accusing the media of being Nigeria’s problem.
It was learnt that Mr Okafor, a reporter with 247ureports.com, was coming from Nnewi where he was invited to cover the Anambra South rally of the Soludo Ambassadors, when over 10 staff of NSCDC descended on him.
It was further gathered that the journalist was in the same bus with the NSCDC men provided by the organisers of the rally to convey them from Awka to the venue of the rally and back.
Recounting his ordeal, Mr Okafor explained that trouble started when he wanted to alight at the Unizik Junction, Awka.
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He said after he severally informed and reminded the driver that he would alight at the Unizik Junction the civil defence officers insisted that everybody must remain in the bus and follow them to the very last bus stop.
He said he insisted that he wanted to alight before the driver stopped but that when he alighted he discovered that one of his phones was not on him. He
Further said that he immediately informed them that his phone fell inside the bus and that he would want to pick it, but that the civil defence officers ordered the driver to zoom off.
“I was stretching my hand to collect the phone from the person who picked it when one of the civil defence officials attached to the Awka Capital Territory Development Authority (ACTDA) ordered the driver to speed off and he jammed the door of the bus, leaving me with severe hand injuries.
Okafor further said he boarded a commercial transport to the place where the civil defence officers said would be the last bus stop and that when he got there and sought an explanation from the officer who jammed the bus door, the situation escalated and his colleagues who numbered around 10 descended on him and beat him up.
He added that while beating him the officers accused journalists of being the major problem of Nigeria.
He noted that it took the intervention of Mr Ossy Onuko, the Managing Director (MD) of ACTDA, to quell the violence.
A statement by the corps’ spokesman in the state, Okadigbo Edwin, said the state’s Commandant, Mr Edwin Osuala, had ordered a thorough investigation into the matter.
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