My dad, Maj. Gen. E. Akpan (rtd) had gone out to vote in his polling unit, when he got back he met a mammoth crowd in his compound. The Corpers who were amongst the crowd explained to him that they had nowhere else to run to with the ballot materials and that Godswill Akpabio's thugs were on a rampage hijacking ballot boxes in all the local governments and carting them away to Akpabio in Government house, so they needed to run away with the ones in their possession for safe keeping and that they felt my father's compound was the safest place to bring them too till the thugs go away.
On
hearing this my dad started making frantic efforts to reach Inec Head
office in Uyo to alert them on what's happening in his village in Nsit
Atai! However before contact could be established SSS, police and the
army stormed my father's compound and demanded to have access into the
property! The youths immediately wanted to launch a protest but my dad
hastily halted them saying he doesn't want further disruptions to the
electoral process. He asked his soldiers who are detailed to him to open
up the gate and allow them in. So SSS drove into the compound in their
armored vehicles while shooting their machine guns into the air!
My
father had to appeal to them to calm down. At this point the SSS
officials told my dad that he has been invited to their office for
questioning, my dad's soldiers immediately intervened saying they will
not allow the General to be taken anywhere and that their job is to
protect him! An argument ensued between my dad's soldiers and the SSS
before my dad cut in and said he will graciously go with them for
questioning. They told my dad it will only take a couple of hours, my
dad's soldiers insisted on going with them and they agreed for two of
them to come along. After a few hours of questioning Governor Akpabio
ordered for my dad's soldiers to be sent back to base which is the
barracks! His aide too was sent away.
My dad was now all alone with no
communication with the outside world for hours. They kept turning my
family away saying we can't see him. At about 9pm the
family was now given access to my dad, he was weak and shaking and
could barely utter a word! He was in a very bad shape and we were scared
for his health, we begged and they agreed for a medical personnel to
come and see him, as suspected his blood pressure was through the roof
and he had to be given medication to arrest the situation before it got
worse.
He was put in a dingy, dark and dirty cell room with a tattered,
flimsy and disgusting mattress on the bare floor!
We were there till 12midnight
and all they could tell us was that Governor Akpabio insist he's held
there indefinitely! This is day 2 and my 74 year old pensioner father
has not eaten or received proper medical attention! He has given his
statement and is still being held without cause! The holding facility is
in a deplorable condition and we are concerned that this will worsen
his health! My father is innocent of what he's being accused of. Our
dictator governor is well known for silencing and quenching anything
that comes in the way of his atrocities!
He cannot stand a right
standing citizen like my father because it makes him look bad which he
is! They can continue with their "investigations" but Akpabio should
please release my father from that dungeon! If my father dies in that
cell just like all the others he has killed over the years this
particular blood will take away peace from his life till he pays for it!
For his own good let him do the needful! #releaseGeneralAkpan
Barr.Iniobong Kelia Akpan
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