Alleged Breach of F/Human Right In Ibiono Ibom:Man Seeks Over N15m Damages From Village Headship Contender, AK Police Commissioner, Ors

Chief Clement Bassey Udo in Suit No: HU/547/2012 had since August 29, 2012 in a Motion on Notice sought special, general and exemplary damages amounting to over N15million from one Chief Asuakak Effiong Brown from Ikot Ekop Ibiono in Ibiono Ibom LGA, Police Officer Ubok Obong(IPO) and the Commissioner of Police Akwa Ibom State for what he claimed “illegal, unlawful and violent arrest and detention” of his person for four days(11th to 14^th Feb. 2012) at Ikot Akpan Abia State Police Headquarters.

In a 56 paragraphs Affidavit in support of Motion, Chief Clement Bassey Udo had narrated how twelve Policemen armed with AK 47 Riffles in company of Chief Asuakak Effiong Brown, on the instruction of Akwa Ibom State Police Commissioner, invaded his house at about 5am of 11/2/12 and took him away in “a white Hilux pick up Van” half naked.

Though he stated that he was not told what his offence was he said he was not shown any warrant of arrest by the Police. Chief Clement Bassey who said he was a Village head-elect at the time, narrated his experience while in the SARS cell, how he was mercilessly beaten by “hardened criminals”.

He later learnt that he was arrested based a petition routed to the Akwa Ibom State Police Commissioner dated Feb. 4^th 2011 by “Apostle Asuakak Effiong Brown” captioned “Petition of Armed Robbery”, alleging that he was one of the five armed men who invaded his house on 28/1/2011 and robbed him of N100,000.00(cash), 23 bags of rice and GSM handset.

In part, the said letter read, “On 28/1/2011 at about 4am in the morning, five armed men invaded my compound broke into my room and robbed me of the sum of N100,000.00, 23 bags of rice, my GSM Handset. I was able to recognize one Clement Bassey. After the operation, the armed men shot and kill my dog”.

The said letter in the first paragraph indicated that “sometime in the month of January 2011 the Finance Commissioner, Mr Bassey Albert Akpan donated 23 bags of rice and money to be shared to Ikot Ekop “as one of the benefitting community”. The Waves findings revealed that the said letter was received, stamped and dated 9/2/2011 by the Compol’s office.

The Applicant stated that his ordeal started when in 2011 on 13^th of January the current Finance Commissioner invited all village heads and to a place called Asantim Ibiono and he, as a Village head-elect had to go there with one Christian Augustine Bassey, the Youth leader of his village.

He said at the meeting Commissioner Bassey Akpan donated 23 bags of rice and N150,000.00 which himself and the Youth leader had to pick up on January 17, 2011 and that he informed his village council Chairman, Chief Effiong Brown on 30/1/2011about the rice and how it was decided should be shared and he agreed.

He stated that Chief Effiong Brown was covertly offended for he felt that as the village Council Chairman he ought to have collected and shared the rice and whatever was there to be shared to the family heads of Ikot Ekop Ibiono.

 

Chief Clement Bassey said but not for the intervention of his solicitor who wrote a letter dated 14/2/2011 to the Police Commissioner he would have been held in the Cell for more days, adding that even the family head of Chief Effiong Brown, Chief Paulinus Ebong and a retired RSM of the Nigerian Army named Chief Vincent who showed up to bail him were equally arrested and incarcerated till 6am of Feb. 11, 2011.

In course of his incarceration Chief Clement Bassey said he lost two building contracts for N8m and N2m respectively and that N130,000.00 was said to have been paid “as ransome” for his bail to the Police authorities before he could slip out of their grip.

He admitted that Chief Asuakak Effiong Brown and him had since been involved in a legal tussle of village headship of Ikot Ekop Ibiono and that there was a pending Suit No.HIT/32/2010 on the matter at the High Court Itu.

He further alleged that the petition Chief Effiong Brown wrote to the Police was malicious and aimed at labeling him for a plot to eliminate or kill him by framing him up. He lamented that after he was released on the “purported bail”, he was asked to report back on 22/2/2011 which he did but that the IPO Ubok Obong threatened to re-arrest and detain him if he did not produce the said bags of rice. According to Chief Clement Bassey, the rice was shared to the seven familyheads of Ikot Ekop and Chief Paulinus Ebong had collected for Chief Asuakak Effiong Brown’s family.

In his Counter Affidavit filed three months after on November 14, 2012 Chief Asuakak Effiong Brown also lay claims to being the village head of Ikot Ekop Ibiono pleading with a photocopy of “Certificate of Recognition” signed by Governor Akpabio dated 2011, and had also in a letter dated 31/1/2011, addressed to the Commissioner of Police petitioned that Chief Clement Bassey stole 23 bags of rice meant for members of 22 villages. He had said in the letter that all peaceful means could not make him have a change of heart and bring back the rice, but appealed to the police to help recover same.

He denied going to Chief Clement’s house with the policemen and that it was three policemen as against 12 Policemen alleged by Chief Clement. The claim that Chief Clement went to Asantin with a Youth leader of the village and got rice for their village and shared as per the decision of those concerned was described by Chief Effiong Brown as “lies and half truths”.

Chief Effiong Brown asserted that he was selected village head-elect since November 2009 and that by 13/1/2011 he was already both village head elect and Chairman of village Council while Chief Clement Bassey Udo was Vice Chairman of the village Council.

He also argued that the said meeting with village heads and village heads-elect held at the instance of the Finance Commissioner was on December 2010 and not 13/1/2011 as claimed by Chief Clement. He denied giving consent to the sharing of the rice, adding that Chief Clement was smarter than him as he had picked the 23 bags of rice before he arrived the venue. He said the Youth leader of Ikot Ekop village is Mr Vincent Francis Akpan and not Christian Augustine Bassey as claimed by Chief Clement Bassey.

He further argued that he confronted Chief Clement Bassey on the rice issue but was amazed that the following day when he sent the youths of the village to convey the rice to the village hall for sharing Clement Bassey had “absconded” and not even a bag of rice was seen. He equally denied suing Chief Clement Bassey before Southern Ibiono Council of Chiefs, adding that he never had any legal tussle over village headship with Chief Clement, describing such claim as “blatant falsehood”, saying he had never been served with any process thereto.

He equally denied seeking to eliminate Chief Clement as he was not contesting “the throne” with him.

While Chief Asuakak Effiong Brown was busy denying that he never had any case contesting the village headship of Ikot Ekop Ibiono with Chief Clement Bassey, the seven family heads of Nung Akwa, Nung Umo Etuk, Nung Udom, Nung Udobom, Nung Akpan, Nung Anya and Nung Akpan Ubo all of Ikot Ekop village, Ibiono Ibom LGA were heading to Court by Monday January 7, 2013 to file Affidavit attesting that Chief Clement Bassey was unanimously selected village head elect of Ikot Ekop on 29/1/2009 in compliance with the Traditional Rulers' Law, Laws of Akwa Ibom State, 2000.

They held that Chief Clement Bassey was only performing the function expected of his office as the village head-elect with respect to sharing the 23 bags of rice and that they were surprised when Chief Asuakak Effiong Brown "maliciously without any just cause, or reasonable ground, petitioned" Chief Clement Bassey to the Commissioner of Police alleging that he was an armed robber.

The family heads are Donstan Edet Okon, Paulinus Sunday Ebong,Udo Emmanuel Akpan,Francis Brendan Bassey, Camillus Effiong Akpan, Anthony Effiong Awak and James Effiom Ebong.

Meanwhile, the case which started in the vacation Court in Uyo, also rolled through the Uyo High Court in November 14, 2012 to another vacation court in December 14, 2012 when Chief Clement Bassey’s Solicitor, Emem Adams Esq. filed further Affidavit in response to the Counter-Affidavit of Chief Asuakak Effiong Brown pleading copy of Originating processes in Suit No:HIT/32/2010; a copy of the form for the selection of village head filled by Chief Clement Bassey dated Jan 29, 2009; a copy of the letter Chief Asuakak Effiong Brown wrote to the Police Commissioner dated 4/2/2011 reporting that Chief Clement Bassey was among the five persons who robbed him.

The further Affidavit argued that the Certificate he was parading as village head was fraudulently obtained, pointing out that the Court would be urged to charge Chief Effiong Brown for perjury as per his subverting the letter he wrote to the Police and replacing same with another dated 31/1/201.

The case was adjourned to January 21, 2013 in High Court 9 in Uyo presided over by Justice Joy Uwana.