Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) residing along the Lugbe–Airport Road axis of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have petitioned the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) over alleged abuse of power, unlawful arrests, extortion and threats to life involving a motorcycle union leader and officers of the Nigeria Police Force AIG Zone 7 Command in Abuja.
In the petition signed by Kamala Madugu on behalf of more than 2,000 affected IDPs, the complainants accused the union leader, Alhaji Usman Buba Goza, and a senior police officer, DSP Musthafha Isa, of orchestrating intimidation against displaced persons who depend on commercial motorcycles for their livelihood.
The IDPs alleged that several of their members were arrested without due process by officers attached to AIG Zone 7, allegedly acting on Goza’s directives. They claimed motorcycles belonging to displaced riders were confiscated during these operations, effectively cutting off their means of survival.
“These seizures appear to be punitive measures to coerce compliance, depriving us of our property and means of survival,” the petition stated.
According to the complainants, Goza has been forcing displaced riders to join his motorcycle and tricycle association, with threats of arrest and seizure of property against those who refuse. They argued that such actions violate their constitutional right to freedom of association and have created what they described as “a reign of fear and compulsion” among IDPs in the Lugbe community.
The petition further alleged that Goza’s aides, locally referred to as “Fiyakasa,” acting in concert with police officers from AIG Zone 7, issued death threats and threats of imprisonment to non-compliant IDPs, triggering panic and disrupting daily life in the area.
The petitioners urged the IGP to order an immediate investigation into the allegations, naming DSP Musthafha Isa and another associate as key actors. They also demanded the release of any unlawfully detained IDPs, the return of seized motorcycles, protection for whistleblowers and victims against retaliation, and disciplinary as well as criminal action against any officers or civilians found culpable.
Copies of the petition were sent to oversight bodies including the Police Service Commission, the Public Complaints Commission, National Assembly committees on Police Affairs, the Ministries of Justice and Police Affairs, and the media.
The allegations, if established, could deepen concerns over police accountability and alleged collusion between security operatives and transport unions in the FCT, particularly in dealings with vulnerable displaced populations who often lack political and economic protection.
Abuja Network News
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