By Owen Eresoyen, Benin
Edo Special Security Squad yesterday reportedly assaulted and brutalized a journalist, Hassan Quadri, who works with a private broadcasting station in Benin.
Quadri was allegedly beaten by members of the squad when they stormed the hotel he was lodging.
Quadri stated that the room he was putting up at the hotel was invaded in commando style by the squad members who assaulted him.
He said, “They came into my room and before I knew it one of them slapped me. And before I could raise my head the other one tears gassed me in a civilized country.”
Governor Okpebholo had last Sunday announced the establishment of the Special Security Squad geared towards flushing out kidnappers, cultists and other criminals in the state.
Explaining his ordeal, Quadri said, “If you must fight anything cultism, is that the right way to go about it? You are arresting youths that are not doing anything on the roads. People that are going about their daily businesses.
“Don’t you know where the real criminals are? You people should check yourself if you are not even among the cultists.They stole my properties. What nonsense is all these?
“If not for the CPS, I would have been behind the bar, and they would tag me as a cultist. That is how they would have tagged and charges brought against me.
“Edo State, we can do better than this. This is not the way forward. They beat me and dragged me on the ground like a thief. They wounded me on the forehead.
He also added that Some of them were even going for his gold necklace. I was very vigilant to protect my property. They dragged me to the Oluku junction.
“But if not for the intervention of the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Fred Itua, it would have been worse.
He stressed that the CPS was even telling them to leave me alone and telling them who I am but they did not hear. It took a lot of intervention from the CPS before they could leave me.
Stating that, “If not for the CPS I would have been in detention or in prison today for what I don’t know. They are just gathering people. Is that the problem?. There are a lot of people that are killing our brothers, fathers and everybody in the farms and nobody is doing anything about it.
Quadri added further, Normally, you should introduce yourself and you said you want to search and I told you to search. The next thing you are ordering me from my room is that I should enter your bus. To where? Do I know who you are and where you are going? He stated
According to him, his offence was that he asked them who they were, “At least you give them the leverage to introduce themselves and ask questions but instead you put tyrants on the road. Edo State government. I will call them tyrants even though you are a uniform man. You burst into my room and I asked a simple question, who are you? Who are you looking for?
Adding that Edo State is hot right now. I shouldn’t just follow you? No ID card. Anybody can wear a Police uniform.
