Protest in Bayelsa As Policeman Hits Pregnant Woman Over Alleged N50 Bribe

enagoa — Operators of commercial tricycle in Bayelsa State, popularly known as Keke Napep, yesterday staged a protest against alleged excessive use of force and extortion by policemen along the streets and highways. They also said a pregnant woman was assaulted by a police inspector along the Azikoro way in the state.
The police inspector, whose identity is still unknown, was reported to have use the butt of his official rifle to hit the pregnant woman while trying to hit a Keke Napep driver who had refused to part with a N50 bribe.
While some senior officials of the Azikoro Divisional Police Headquarters described the action of the police inspector as
"careless" and denied the alleged use of the butt of the rifle, the irate protesters claimed the action of the policeman led to excessive bleeding of the pregnant women from the mouth.
The pregnant woman, according to the protesters, had been rushed to a private hospital known as Glory Land Hospital. A police source claimed a scan had been conducted which pronounced her and the pregnancy okay.
It was gathered that the attempt by the protesters to barricade the premises of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) and the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) along the Azikoro Road was thwarted by armed policemen who shot teargas into the crowd.
One of the protesting Keke Napep drivers, Kingsley Okubo, told The Guardian that the activities of policemen at check-points during the day and at night are unbecoming.
He said: "This is a small state but the amount paid as bribe to policemen is exorbitant and fearful. Can you imagine we pay as much as N600 daily. It is wrong and criminal.
"Most of our passengers are being embarrassed by these policemen at night. They extort us and some of the passengers. They call everyone criminal even while they know that some of them are just going to clubs or bars for relaxation. It is wrong and not speaking well about night life in the state."
Contacted on the development, the spokesman of the Bayelsa State Police Command, Mr. Alex Akhigbe, said though he had been briefed, "the command will investigate the incident."

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