…Alleges Extortion of Motorists
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), a prominent pro-democracy and civil rights advocacy group, has accused soldiers operating in the South-East of Nigeria of defying the directive of the Minister of Defence, General Christopher Gwabin Musa (rtd), to withdraw military personnel from road checkpoints.
HURIWA in a statement issued by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, HURIWA said it observed widespread continuation of military roadblocks across the South-East despite the minister’s clear policy position that soldiers should be redeployed from checkpoints to focus on counterinsurgency and internal security operations.
The rights group expressed concern that the newly sworn-in defence minister may have been misled into believing his directive was being implemented, noting that soldiers are traditionally expected to strictly obey orders from their commanders.
HURIWA stated that during the Yuletide season, its teams of researchers observed “business as usual” at hundreds of roadblocks mounted by soldiers and police across the South-East.
According to HURIWA, armed security personnel at these checkpoints were allegedly engaged in extortion of motorists, causing severe traffic congestion and hardship for road users.
The organisation recalled that General Musa had publicly identified the withdrawal of soldiers from checkpoints as a key strategy in the fight against insecurity and insurgency.
HURIWA further referenced the defence minister’s comments during his screening at the Senate, where he explained his approach to enforcing discipline and tackling insecurity.
“I can assure you that we’re going to address them totally. We’re going to have independent patrol teams that will go and make sure that we do, and what we want to do again is to withdraw basically all military men out of checkpoints and let the police and civil defence corps handle those aspects so that we can go into the bushes and take out these criminals wherever it is they are. It’s important,” he said.
According to the minister, checkpoint duties were to be handed over to the Nigeria Police Force and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), allowing the military to concentrate on direct engagement with criminal and insurgent elements.
For decades, soldiers have manned checkpoints across major roads in Nigeria, particularly in regions experiencing security challenges, as part of efforts to support civil authorities.
However, HURIWA maintained that its findings contradicted the minister’s directive, alleging that soldiers and police remain visibly deployed at numerous checkpoints across the South-East, where they are accused of extorting drivers rather than providing effective security for the local population.
The group called on the defence minister to urgently investigate the alleged disobedience and ensure that his policy directives are fully enforced to restore public confidence in security operations in the region.
