Rights Group Petitions Osogbo Area Commander, Police officers before IGP, PSC, NHRC, others over illegal involvement in debt recovery

…..Calls for their outright dismissal without any further delay….Set to picket Area Command, Osogbo for turning the Police formation to “Jeun Jeun Office”

A human rights organization, the Centre for Human Rights and Social Justice (CHRSJ) has forwarded a strong worded petition to the Police authorities, including; Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr. Kayode Egbetokun, the Chairman, Police Service Commission(PSC), Chief Solomon Arase, the Executive Secretary, National Human Rights Commission(NHRC), Human Rights Watch(HRW), Transparency International(TI) and international communities over illegal involvement in debt recovery by a Woman Police Officer Alao Funmi Joy popularly called “Iya SARS” and others Officers under the watch of the new Area Commander at Okefia, Area Command, Osogbo in Osun State Nigeria.

The group alleged the Woman Police Officer (Iya SARS:-+2348036881755/

2348144086313) and other officers under her in the Area Command, Osogbo, of involving in debt recovery by claiming that a Complainant who has left the shore of the country to foreign land, reported a debt matter to their Command which it was not part of the statutory duties as highlighted in the Police Act.

The Woman Police Officer (Iya SARS) and her cohorts officers just came to the residential house of one Mr. Adekunle Omotunde+2348034957589 at early hour of Tuesday, May 21st, 2024 at the precise time of 5:16 am, to arrest him for owing his friend who has traveled abroad, adding that until the intervention of the Executive Chairman of the Centre, Comrade Adeniyi Alimi Sulaiman who told them they should stop spoiling the reputation of the Nigeria Police Force(NPF) for selfish pocket.

 The CHRSJ Chief then requested from the so-called Police officers led by Woman Police Officer (Iya SARS), if they have sent prior invitation letter to their innocent victim(Adekunle Omotunde+2348034957589), they replied no and urging them to follow due process of inviting the Nigeria citizen by birth as stipulated in 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended.

After which they returned back to their Area Command office but to the human rights body dismay, they brought the invitation to the resident of their innocent victim(Adekunle Omotunde+2348034957589) in the afternoon of the same day of Tuesday May 21st, 2024, over alleged debt owing his abroad friend, adding that the Four Police officers including; Iya SARS that brought their purported invitation came with mask which “shows the sign of planning to kidnap him(Adekunle Omotunde+2348034957589)” if they meet him in the house.

Forwarding the Petition dated Tuesday 21st day of May, 2024, which was signed by the CHRSJ’S Executive Chairman, Comrade Sulaiman, “to the Police authorities along with the Comrade Sulaiman recorded phone conversation with the Police Woman Officer, claiming that the Executive Chairman of CHRSJ must know that they(Police) would eat now as if the government that employed them for statutory duties, were not paying their Salaries as at when due, adding that she(Iya SARS) was cursing Comrade Sulaiman for not want to allow them to eat from the bribe called “Bail Fund”.

The rights group noted that the Police officers in the Area Command, Osogbo, have become the tools in the hand dick and harry Complainant because of what to eat, adding that the so-called Police officers(Iya SARS) and her team have turned the Policing the country to “Jeun Jeun” means “eat and let me eat”, so investigation was not going in the Osogbo Area Command Office again than “Jeun Jeun”, describing the Police actions as ridiculous, sad, abomination, aberration, and affront to the Policing agenda of the current Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr. Kayode Egbetokun, a finest and we’ll trained Police boss.

CHRSJ further described the Police officers action as unprofessional, evil, illegal, unlawful, devil, unconstitutional, undemocratic, satanic, embarrassing, shameless, and uncalled for, calling for outright dismissal of the alleged Police officers involved, before they destroyed the reputation of Nigeria Police Force(NPF), adding that if the Police authorities could not dismissed them outrightly because what they would eat, they should be transferred to the States like Imo, Borno, Adamawa, Kaduna, Niger, Plateau and Bauchi, where the people in the area were facing security challenges for their policing duties.

This was contained in a statement issued by the CHRSJ’s Media Office and signed by its Executive Chairman, which copies were made available to newsmen on Wednesday, stressed that the Police Officers have been warned several times that the Police Act did not permit them to involve in debt recovery saga.

Supporting its argument with the case of Afribank(Nig) Plc vs. Oyimah (2004) 2 NWLR(pt.854)654 at 680, Nzeako, JCA, stated thus; “The Police Force is a respectable institution which is entrusted with the security of the country and the people. It is not a debt collector and should never be involved in such services.”

Similar, in the case of McLaren vs. Jennings (2003) 3 NWLR (pt. 808) 470 at 483 – 484, the Court of Appeal stated as follows: “Section 4 of the Police Act which deals with the general duties of the Nigeria Police does not empower the Police to enforce a contract or to collect rents or common debts…..This is not one of the statutory duties of the Nigeria Police”.

In the same vein, the same Woman Police Officer(Iya SARS) and her co-travellers in the Area Command had earlier illegally arrested another one Adekunle Ibrahim Ajibade on Friday 3rd day of May, 2024 over the same matter, adding that the same Police officers illegally extorted the sum of Thirty Thousand Naira(N30,000) from his father who served as his surety, Mr. Olanrewaju Ajibade by calling the bribe money, “Bail Fund”.

Signed:

Comrade ADENIYI ALIMI SULAIMAN

(Revolutionary Alfa),

Executive Chairman, Centre for Human Rights and Social Justice(CHRSJ)