In a distressing incident, an Oyo State Road Transport Management Authority (OYRTMA) officer was arrested, detained, and stripped naked by the Zone F Command of the Nigerian Immigration Service.
The incident occurred while the OYRTMA officer was performing their duty and apprehended an Immigration officer for violating traffic rules by driving against the flow of traffic along Onipepeye Bridge underpass in Ibadan.
According to witnesses, the Immigration officer initially agreed to follow the OYRTMA official to their office for interagency talks to resolve the matter.
However, in an apparent act of retaliation, the Immigration officer diverted the route to the Nigerian Immigration Service Zonal F Command headquarters, where the OYRTMA official was detained and stripped.
Speaking with journalists, one of the OYRTMA officers also present during the incident who didn’t want name in print said: “Our personnel stopped the vehicle and approached him because we found out that he has passed one way but the person said he didn’t know it’s one way so, our officer told them the vehicle would be apprehended and taken down to our office.
”So, one of our officers joined the immigration vehicle, instead of the vehicle to move down to our office, he moved to another direction. Our personnel then followed them on bike and on getting to immigration office there at their Zone F Command at Aromolaran, they opened the vehicle and brought out our personnel and started assaulting him and beating him.
“The second personnel that followed them, on seeing that they were assaulting his colleague brought out his phone and started recording. So, when they (immigration officers) realized that they were being recorded, they tried to approach him and seeing what has happened to his colleague, ran away and the immigration officials pursued him.
“They didn’t stop pursuing him until he got to one corner where they apprehended and arrested him, led him to their office (immigration), seized his bike, phone, and stripped him naked and beat the two of them.
“So, on we getting the information at the office, we moved down there. Upon getting there and we told them we were there in respect of our personnel, the immigration officials started telling us cock and bull stories that our personnel tried to kidnap, he said.
General Manager of OYRTMA, Adekola Adeoye, condemned the incident and the actions of the Immigration officer who violated traffic regulations.
He demanded justice for the mistreated OYRTMA official and criticized the Immigration officers’ attempts to cover up the situation by refusing an audience with the OYRTMA representatives.
Adeoye said that “I wish to thank the Executive Assistant to the Executive Governor on Security Matters, CP Sunday Odukoya (rtd), for his prompt action and intervention, though the case has been brought to notice of the Governor, who has since directed other arms of government to take up the matter.
“I am of the opinion that no one is above the law, and when this kind of situation arises, then the leadership is expected to find means of addressing it, which prompted the Executive Chairman of the agency, Maj Adesagba Adekoya (Rtd), to visit the Zone F command and resolve the matter.
“But instead, the officers of the command worsening the matter with their unruly behavior, impolite attitude and insulting matter even in the presence of their ACG, to the leadership of OYRTMA, which is unbecoming of a federal agency with such a serious responsibility of a responsible citizenry across board, he said.
As of the time of this report, efforts to reach the Public Relations Officer of the Zone F Command of the Nigerian Immigration Service have been unsuccessful, as they have not responded to inquiries.
