Military checkpoints have become mere extortion points — Anambra Commissioner

By PAMELA EBOH, Awka

The Commissioner for Information in Anambra State, Mr. Paul Nwosu, has said that the long vehicular traffic caused by military check points in various parts of the state are orchestrated to extort money from drivers and motorists.

He condemned what he described as a pernicious attitude to traffic management by the military, declaring that the security of the state must not be compromised on the altar of making filthy lucre by men who ought to protect the people.

Nwosu, in a statement titled, “Checkpoints or Extortion-points”, made available to journalists in Awka on Wednesday, December 28, 2022, said: “It is a tragedy that the checkpoints manned by military men on literally all the roads across the state have precipitated punitive traffic gridlocks where the mass of Yuletide vacationers are agonizingly trapped for many hours, an experience which Anambra State Government had worked hard to avert at this period.

“The recent practical experience of the Deputy Governor of Anambra State, Dr. Onyekachukwu Ibezim, in courageously confronting the soldiers on the Amansea end of the state, calls for grave concern.

“It seems these military men manning the checkpoints have turned these places into toll points this season, thereby causing traffic jams and thwarting government’s effort to ensure free flow of traffic.

“The case of Amansea is particularly instructive because the Deputy Governor had warned the military personnel earlier in the day to allow traffic move smoothly, but immediately he left they resumed the unwholesome “checkings’.”

He expressed disappointment that the military men were obviously not apprehending the hoodlums harassing the state.

“What then is the use of blocking roads at this time when there is no particular intel to track an impending crime or fleeing criminals?

“This leaves one with one conclusion: that the long traffic jams are orchestrated just to extort money from drivers,” the commissioner stated.