Protest over Boko Haram prisoners’ transfer to Anambra

Firstclass newsline learnt that Commercial activities were paralysed
on Saturday in Anambra State following protests by traders across the
state.
The traders, who closed their shops as early as 9am in major cities of
Onitsha, Awka, Nnewi, Ekwulobia and Agulu, took to the streets
protesting what they termed plan by the Federal Government to transfer
Boko Haram detainees to prisons in the state.
At Tarzan junction, Nkpor in Idemili North Local Government Area of
the state, traders and other residents blocked the Enugu – Onitsha
Expressway chanting songs suggesting they would be forced to revive
the clamour for Biafran Republic if pushed to the wall.
The traders carried placards bearing inscriptions like 'Buhari should
not destroy the peace in Anambra State,' 'Biafra kanyi choro' (We want
Biafra), 'Buhari, Igbos cannot accept your prisoners, 'We do not want
Boko Haram in Anambra,' 'Federal Government, why extend Boko Haram to
Anambra?' and 'Boko Haram prisoners are not allowed here.'
Speaking with journalists during the protests, the Secretary-General,
Anambra State Amalgamated Traders Association, Chief Chuma Elucharu,
stated that traders in the state decided to shut markets to protest
the rumoured relocation of Boko Haram detainees to the state.
Eluchraru said the protests would be continuous until the Federal
Government assured that there was no such plan.
At Onitsha, the protesters threatened to be violent should the rumour
proved to be true.
There was tension as police used tear gas to disperse the protesters.
While addressing the traders, the President-General of AMATAAS, Chief
Okwudili Ezenwankwo, urged them to be calm, saying further
consultation would be made by the association to get clear picture of
the situation.
Also, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Mr. Uche Eze,
said there was no need to panic, nothing that the police were handling
the situation.
Eze enjoined the people of the state to go about their businesses
without fear of molestation.
A senior officer in the Nigerian Prisons Service in the state who
spoke on the condition of anonymity to a source, however, said they
got a signal recently to prepare to receive some detainees of the
violent sect.
But the Nigeria Prisons Service has said there is no plan to transfer
Boko Haram suspects in custody to prisons in Anambra State as being
speculated.
The NPS Public Relations Officer, Francis Enebore, said most of the
terror suspects in prison custody are still awaiting trial and cannot
be moved out of the jurisdiction of the court where they would be
prosecuted.
He dismissed speculations that the prison authorities had formalised
plans to transfer terror suspects from the northern states to Anambra
State, saying there is nothing like that.
Enebore said, "Most of the terror suspects are awaiting trial and so,
there is no way they can be moved to another state because they must
be tried in the state where they committed the crime.
"Apart from this, our duty is to move them from prison to court for
trial and since they have not been convicted, how can we transfer them
to other states outside the jurisdiction of the court where they would
be tried? People are just saying things they know nothing about, there
is no truth to the rumours that we are transferring terror suspects to
other states."
Firstclassnewsline.net