Rt. Hon. Chikwendu Kalu, Speaker, Abia State House of Assembly has denied ordering the shooting of officers of the Federal Road Safety Corps, shot by his Police orderlies on the Aro-Ngwa axis of the Enugu Port- Harcourt express on Saturday 15th July, 2017.
“I received a distress call that while my wife was on her way to Aba with her friend and orderly, some officers of the FRSC accosted her car, ordered them to come out of her car and started hitting her car with their stick, and finally dragged out her chief details, who is equally a woman out of the car.”
“When I was informed of the incident, I sent my details to find out who the people in question were, because we thought the people on that uniform may not be right people, it was in the course of doing that the incident happened. I was informed that somebody sustained a gunshot injury and we been on top of the situation, trying to find out what really happened.”
“But I want to say that with every sense of responsibility and humility that I’m well informed about the importance of human life, and equally aware of the provisions of section 33, sub-section (1) of the 1999 constitution as amended that forbids taking away one’s life, I’m equally aware of the sister provision of section 33 sub-section (2) of the same constitution on the mode a human life could be taken.”
“I strongly condemn any over zealousness on the side of any security personnel be the person a member of the Police, Road Safety, the Army and Department of States services. I think I will be the last person to encourage it because it doesn’t augur well with State and the Country at large.”
“ I’m well informed enough to know that I don’t have the authority to order anybody to shoot and I can’t even encourage such an action, even under the highest degree of provocation, I would rather proceed to the law court as practicing lawyer, than take the laws into my hand.”
Rt. Hon. Chikwendu Kalu, Speaker, Abia State House of Assembly
However, eyewitnesses at the scene said that the speaker gave the order when the FRSC officers stopped the Sport Utility Vehicle his wife was travelling in along the Umuikaa/Aba-Port Harcourt Expressway.
“When the vehicle was stopped (by the FRSC officials), the driver refused to stop, only for him to stop at a distance. The driver reversed the vehicle and it was discovered that a woman in the passenger seat in front, is an officer of the Department of State Services attached to the governor’s wife.”
“The DSS officer ran towards the officer who stopped the vehicle, held him by uniform and dragged him to the ground, accusing him of hitting their vehicle. One of them called the speaker whose village is nearby. He then came with some policemen. He ordered them to shoot the armless officers who were sitting inside the patrol vehicle and mercilessly beat up the team leader.”
“The policemen also forcefully opened the patrol vehicle and went away with the battery. They left the team leader and the other officials that were shot on the road. Other road users helped them to the hospital.”