An appeal has been made by Igbo women, united under the Igbo Women Assembly (IWA), urging the Federal Government to remove soldiers stationed at checkpoints in the South-East region.
According to them, the soldiers are causing more issues than they are resolving, focusing more on extorting money from drivers and mistreating travelers instead of carrying out their designated duties.
The Igbo women expressed disappointment at the humiliation faced by travelers on the roads, as they are forced to alight from their vehicles and pass through checkpoints on foot before being allowed to continue their journeys.
They questioned why such degrading practices are witnessed only in the South-East and pondered on the supposed wrongdoing of the Ndigbo people to deserve such treatment.
Speaking in Enugu, the President of IWA, Lolo Nneka Chimezie, wondered why the soldiers dispatched to Igbo territory for addressing security challenges have diverted from their mandate to focus on extortion and demeaning the regional populace.
The women pointed out the irony of criminals carrying out attacks and kidnappings in close proximity to these checkpoints without being apprehended.
“Having failed in their duty to safeguard the citizens as instructed, we demand an immediate withdrawal of the soldiers by the Federal Government. The police force should be tasked with protecting the people as they are more accessible than the soldiers, who tend to employ harsh measures on individuals, irrespective of their age,” Lolo Chimezie emphasized.