INSPECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE, DEPUTY INSPECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE JOSEPH O. EGBUNIKE AND INSPECTOR THOMAS AMONKE DARES ENUGU FEDERAL HIGH COURT, DISOBEYS COURT ORDER.

Tension mounts as D.I.G Joseph O. Egbunike and other top police officers defy court order following the alleged disobedience of the order of the Federal High Court, Enugu Judicial Division presided over by Hon. Justice I.N Buba, made on the 1st day of July,2021 directing the 1st -3rd Respondents, the Inspector General of Police, Deputy Inspector General of Police Joseph O. Egbunike and Inspector Thomas Amonke to stay all actions and release the Applicants forthwith, having been granted bail by the Court.

The applicants Akpa Francis, Obinna Mamah and Joshua Ogbonna through their team of lawyers, stormed the Court seeking to enforce their fundamental rights to life, liberty and dignity vide the notice of application filed on 30th June,2021 in Suit No. FHC/EN/CS/96/2021. In line with Order IV of the Fundamental Right Enforcement Procedure Rules, 2009, the Applicants also filed a motion Exparte praying for bail and interim order directing the Police to Stay all actions relating to and/or connected with the complaints of the Applicants.

Following the grant of the motion exparte, the bailiff of Court armed with the duly drawn order of the Court and other originating processes, proceeded to FCID Enugu Annex office of the 1st - 3rd Respondents being the address endorsed for service of the Processes on the said Respondents.

After placing calls on the D.I.G Joseph O. Egbunike, the Assistant Commissioner of Police in charge of the FCID Annex Enugu Mr. Kasumu refused to accept service of the Court order and accompanying processes. The bailiff of Court in adherence to the rules of service of Court processes, dropped the Court order and the processes in the office of the police officer. The irony that followed was the instant lock of the bailiff and the Applicants' lawyers in the police premises insisting that the bailiff and the lawyers can only be allowed to go if the bailiff takes back the Court order together with other processes. Being constrained and in danger, of unlawful incarceration, the helpless Court bailiff left with the processes and the Applicants lawyers who acted as pointer to the bailiff.

Notwithstanding the above, the bailiff proceeded to Abuja and on 2nd July,2021 with the effected personal service order of Court and the originating processes on the above named police officers who are the 1st -3rd Respondents in the suit pending in Court.

Despite the service of the Court order directing the Police to release the applicants having been granted bail, the D.I.G Joseph O. Egbunike in fragrant disobedience of the order of Court has refused to release the applicants on bail nor stay further action in the matter.

Upon reporting to the Court the refusal of the D.I.G Joseph O. Egbunike to release the applicants as directed by the Court, the Court on 7th July,2021 ordered the Officer incharge of Police Legal Department State CID Enugu to appear before the Court to explain why the Police will disobey the order of Court.

The applicants through their lawyers have initiated committal proceedings against D.I.G Joseph O. Egbunike, I.G.P and Thomas Amonke by filing in Court Form 48 which has been served on the officers.

Meanwhile, the violation of the Applicants rights followed the clandestine moves to shutdown Enugu Political Arena WhatsApp Platform by persons at the echelon of political governance in Enugu State using their surrogates. The crime committed by these innocent citizen (Applicants) were their refusal to yield to the above antics and plots to gag the people of Enugu from airing their views on politics, governance and dividends of democracy in Enugu State.

It will be recalled that sometime ago the news of Police invitation to the admin of Enugu Political Arena WhatsApp Platform Comrade Francis Akpa and other participants emerged. The people of Enugu were anxious to know the reason for the invitation and on whose behest the invitation was orchestrated.

Shortly after the news, one of the participants Joshua Ogbonna was arrested by Police officers from Anti Kidnapping Squad. He was granted bail after being detained for about two days.

The Admin of the platform in strict adherence to the rule of law and respect for constituted authority, honoured his invitation to the Police.

The Admin was confronted with a petition written by one Mr. Ifeanyi Ossai alleging character assassination among others. The principal suspects named in the Petition were Chief Damian Odo and Comrade Obinna Mamah.

After writing his statement, the Admin was released on bail the same day.

Comrade Obinna Mamah who is one of the participants in the platform also presented himself to Police Officers at Anti kidnapping Squad for interrogation based on Mr. Ifeanyi Ossai's allegations.

Comrade Obinna Mamah made statement, interviewed the Commissioner of Police who thereafter directed that he should be released on bail to a reliable surety. The directive was adhered to.

Two days after, Mr. Joshua Ogbonna, Francis Akpa (Admin), Obinna Mamah, Ifeanyi Ossai, Commander Anti kidnapping Squad and his men and the lawyers for the parties, stormed the Enugu CP's office for interview.

Shockingly, the same Mr. Ifeanyi Ossai who orchestrated the arrest of the afore mentioned persons, choose the forum of his choice for the investigation, suddenly wrote to the Inspector General of Police and secured the transfer of the same case to Force CID Abuja,"

The Applicants together with their lawyers were said to have been confronted with the petition to the IGP and the team of Police Officers from Abuja who were in the CP'S office to whisked the case file and the suspects to Abuja.

It took the uncompromised stance of the CP who insisted that due process be followed, for the Applicants to be saved from being whisked off to Abuja that night.

The Applicants presented themselves for investigation, appeared whenever invited throughout the period of investigation, yet Mr. Ifeanyi Ossai and his cohorts were not satisfied, apparently because the CP refused their invitation to incarcerate the above innocent citizens for no just cause.

At the instance of Mr. Ifeanyi Ossai, the petition was transferred to Abuja and assigned to D.I.G Joseph Egbunike who obviously was ready to carry out the wishes of the instigators.

On June 16, 2021, Comrade Obinna Mama, Comrade Francis Akpa and Joshua Ogbonna (Applicants) in obedience to the invitation of the DIG went to FCIID Abuja. In a bailable offense, and considering the fact that the Applicants were already on police bail at Enugu and that they obediently came to answer the D.I.G's invitation. The DIG arrested and sent them to detention despite providing a level 15 civil servant in the Federal Service who is with every documents required by the police and ready surety for the Applicants.

The Applicants have been in detention since 16th June 2021 till date. Millions of tax payers money were alleged to have been wasted in sponsoring the illegal detention of the Applicants, all aimed at stopping the people of Enugu from speaking out.