One shot , 6 arrested IPOB members cry for help in Awka

www.odogwublog.com reports that seven Members of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) were arrested by the Nigerian Police on their way back to Port Harcourt after their peaceful protest to Delta state.
One of them, who is the Coordinator of IPOB in Okirika/Rumulogu local government area of Rivers state, Tamonu Tonye Tyger was shot on his leg by the police while the six others were detained at CID office in Awka.
According to Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Okechukwu Ali while confirming the shot and arrest said the seven members of IPOB were armed robbers and that they challenged police officials on duty even wanted to disarm an officer before he was shot.
He confirmed that the incident happened along Onitsha Owerre road by Ozubulu-Ihiala road but will nt give further details as he was in a public place.
He said investigations are ongoing to discover their true identities but as far as they were concerned the seven suspects were armed robbers. He said the one shot was running away with a locally made pistol before he was shot, warning that robbers should not hide under the cloak of IPOB.
Though Tyger was shot, others including Dike Brown Jacob –a flying Boat driver; Obimma –a taxi driver ; Achike –a hair stylist among others were arrested and detained at CID Awka.
At the hospital were over a dozen members of War veterans who came on solidarity to ensure the IPOB member is not humiliated.
But Tyger at his hospital bed at Amaku University Teaching Hospital Awka said the police were just framing them up as the man who shot may have done that mistakenly. He said there was no need for the frame up as God has saved his life adding that when the gun shot was released themselves and the police as well as passers bye were shocked and all ran helter skelter only for the police to return minutes later to accuse him of being a robber when innocent children have assisted him off road to avoid being crushed.
He narrated how the trouble began: ‘’ we went for a peaceful protest in Asaba as members of IPOB but decided to move to Awka to see somebody. We did that but could not make it coming back that day which was last Thursday and by Friday , next morning we headed back to Port Harcourt but decided to branch at Owerre for our protest march before we were stopped by the police.
‘’They demanded for our papers which we gave them and for our license which the driver said he lost and they said we should bring Five thousand naira before we could continue our trip, but we begged in vain before hey said we should bring February. We did not understand before we were asked to go and meet his junior officer who explained that it was N2,000.
‘’We went back to galvanize the money at least N1,000 to enable us continue our journey but when I was coming back from the vehicle, I saw the police slapping one of my members and I was headed there to find out why, only for me to hear the sound of a gun. I never knew it would hit me but it did and I saw myself falling down. At the sound of the gun the police men jumped inside their van and left while others around all ran away. The Children coming back from farm saw me and inquired what happened I told them and they assisted me to stop a vehicle that would assist me to hospital for a first aide treatment. But before that I rolled away from the road to avoid oncoming vehicle crushing me to death. As the vehicle managed to carry me, somebody in a bike came and said the driver should stop that he was carrying an armed robber. The driver said he was after his health to take him first to a clinic or hospital for first aid before anything.
‘’ Then the police van pulled by and after harassing the driver and myself to the extent they started beating me and pulling me out of the van. They took me to their station and I was still holding the vehicle papers and bleeding before an Igbo officer insisted they take me to the hospital. They called me all sorts of name and I was bleeding profusely. They later took me to a private hospital in Ozubulu, Ekwusigo local government area. For 48 hours no food, no water , no nothing before I was given 2 gala and water. Another officer was asking them why they spared me since we were Baifra and others as they would have killed us than coming to spend money in hospital.
‘’I know the man who shot me , his name is Abel and his surname is…. We were not with any gun or anything they were just framing us up because they don’t know how to explain the gun shot and God will bless their leader who immediately went to Abel and seized his gun and wondered why he should shoot before they went away and later resurfaced. Even till now the ma  is still not happy that his junori shot on duty for no reason.
He said they dumped him at Awka CID for several hours under the sun until somebody lamented on his behalf and he was taken to the backyard on Saturday and never came to hospital again until Monday morning hence he needed good medical care.
He would undergo a major operations tomorrow if there is money though some police men have come to take him away as at press time before The Authority was alerted by men of Pardoned War Veterans Welfare Association Anambra state central command.
Spokesman of the Veterans Prof Ifeanyi Ezeaku Rtd Col lamented that such barbaric things still happen in Nigeria demanding to know the justification of the shooting and the rationale of trying to take somebody away from hospital with gunshot wounds without treatment. He said they were at there meeting place before they were alerted and they rushed to the hospital to stop them from taking a dying man away without care.
When The Authority Correspondent in Anambra contacted Port Harcourt , One Michael Sunday confirmed knowing Tyger as their member and coordinator in IPOB and that he is a Taxi driver not an armed robber , adding that signals have been sent across including his Pastor and their traditional ruler and that of others arrested. He pleaded that attention be given to the health of Tyger before it develops another thing.