The last couple of months of my life seems to be like a movie paused. i'm not the trouble making kind of guy but somehow, i find myself in situations that one is either forced to react or stand and watch helplessly as one is being humiliated. In my case, the former best describes what i have been through lately.

I traveled to Ilorin last month for a friends wedding. it was a very long journey, traveling on the Nigerian typical bad road and in a cab who’s operators can be described as nothing short of greedy. I had a terrible experience going, so on my way back i had to go through another route which i found on google maps. This time the road wasn’t that bad but it had its own challenges almost at every 100km, i had to make a stop to board another vehicle, initially i preferred the route because i didn’t have to go through the Nightmare of traveling on a bad road that's more than 370km.

We started the journey that fateful sunday morning from iilorin to Omu-aran, on a boring note. There was no music to listen to and no one to start a conversation with. So i brought out my laptop which i always travel with to check on something that i had been working on. All of a sudden we approached a police check point, on reaching there i felt something very wrong and unusual about the officers. I couldn't really figure out exactly what it was, but i felt this very strong intuition that something was not right. So i quickly hibernated the computer and hid it under my bag, before the vehicle grind to a halt. A police man who i believe should be in his late 40’s dressed in a jean and polo shirt with the Inscription SARS written bold on it with a big pot belle, walked slowly to the car and gave this frantic look at ever one in the car, like information had reached him that a criminal had boarded the vehicle. The driver greeted him, i don’t think he responded, the next thing he ask the guy seated in front “who are you?” Most people find it difficult answering this question, as it can throw most people of balance, and i observe most people of the force in Nigeria use this question to gain a psychological edge in oppressing and intimidating people. So when the officer ask him, i noticed he couldn’t give a direct answer as he stuttered and barely could mention his name. Next the officer asked “what do you do’’? This time the guy was quick to say he was a student of Kwara state Polytechnic So officer ask the guy to step out of car, at this point i could sense the fear in the face of the guy.

The passengers in the middle seat where all females, so the officer simply turned his attention to me and another guy seated in the back seat. Having read a lot of books that teaches one how to deal with these tactics, i maintained an eye contact with him. I looked him in the face, then he asked, “who are you”? without hesitation i told me my name while i strongly maintained this physical eye contact. The next thing he ask was “what do you do”? I simply told him what i did for a living. I had not in any point bowed to his scheme as i had maintained an excellent posture and confidence and i bet the guy seating close to me understood quite well the tactics too as he was able to defend himself, so he left us and focused on the student who i guess had fallen victim. The officer asked for his luggage which was in a boot of the car so the driver who had a painful leg, assisted in opening the boot of the car. The officer searched every part of the luggage and saw some female clothing, so he started questioning him about the female clothes, he asked if it belong to the girlfriend and guy said it belonged to his sister that he was taking it to her. To my greatest surprise, the officer asked the guy for his cellphones of with the guy obliged, as if the search already wasn’t humiliating enough. I remember the guy brought out two smart phones then the officer asked him what he was doing with two smart phones which the boy couldn’t provide an answer because i believe he was as confused as i was. Next thing the officer asked the guy to open his Whatsapp applications and at the same time for no justified reason he was accusing the guy of being and internet fraudster and was asking him to corporate. I couldn’t believe it. It was as though i was teleported to my history pages back in my school days(I never like thats subject back in school maybe because of the way my teachers taught the subject). The officer asked all sort of questions invading this young man’s privacy. And when he couldn’t find anything incriminating he gave his phones back to him and asked him to pack his bags. Next thing he turned to the driver and started demanding for a tip, i couldn’t follow up the conversation as they had it in yoruba language. I guess the driver gave him some money though.

As we prepared to move, i could see the rest officer at the check point humiliating another guy, this one, they physically abused him, put him on handcuffs and was thrown at the back of the pickup truck. We had been delayed for nearly 25min if not more and i had a 7hr journey ahead of me. I started to process each and everything that had happened at the check point. At this point i became very scared, my fear was that i was miles away from home and i didn’t know anyone in Kwara state and i will be on my own if anything happened to me. So i quickly put my laptop computer in my bag as we resumed our journey to Omu-Aran.

I finally got to Omu Aran at about 11am and had to wait for about another 20 mins to board another cab going to Ado Ekiti. So on my way to Ado i was glad to have the company of this fine young man dress in a typical northern outfit. He spoke eloquently and intelligent, i would later find out he was a 300 level Economics student of the University of Ado Ekiti. So we picked up series of conversations from culture, politics and travel. He seemed to be very excited seeing a southerner, so he was very curious about me. He wondered how i could travel with just the aid of a google map. As we enjoyed our conversation, we ran into another police check point.

This time we were all boys in the car, two of us at the bad and one in front including the driver. the police guy who seem to be very jovial, asked us to come down and he briefed us that they were doing what they call a search operation and that he will want us to corporate with them. I didn’t want to resist or ask any questions about my rights as i had already seen another fellow right at the check point handcuffed to the back of their pick-up. one by one he search each and everyone of us, using his hands. While he was searching my new found friend picked up a joke and we all starting laughing, but deep inside the laughter had not passed my throat. The officer asked for my wallet, then if found some hard currency in it, i guess he was looking for something more than just currency As he search every but of the wallet, next he asked for my bag. This time i handle the search my self. In the bag i had a native outfit which i wore to the wedding, a shirt i had wore two days earlier, my perfume and of cause my laptop computer. The looks on his face made it seem to me like i was carrying a contraband item. but like i had earlier i maintain a very high level of confidence and i spoke as though i had never spoken pidgin english since the day i was born. To my greatest dismay the idiot started asking me what i use the laptop for and he also asked for the receipt. I told him that the laptop was purely for work and research purpose and that i got the it from a US store online so it came with an Electronic receipt. Then said he wanted something physical that he can believe. They say counter psychological messages produces depression. So i guess he wasn’t mentally sound enough to interrogate me, so he had to let me go. Fortunately, i wasn’t the only one in the car with a laptop that didn’t have a receipt. The process took nearly 20 mins. While we continued our journey my friend told me thats how they harass people on that route and if you fell victim for their scheme that it more humiliating than the search itself.

Till this very moment i find it disturbing that we exist in a country where the system is devoid of respect for basic human right, a country where the protector is the oppressor. Think about hundred of case like this that goes on heard of. A police man violating another persons privacy for his own selfish gain. Its terrible, when i see Television ads sponsored by the government to promote unity in this country, i see a fruitless effort as i believe that there is no right way to do wrong and there is also no wrong way to do right. These are flaws in government that even the blind can see, that should be addressed but they will rather ignore as they themselves are beneficiaries of the corruption. To be honest, I think we really got a long way to go in this country. As a kid i use to be a very firm believer of the project Nigeria, but as its now that believe is clouded in fog. I think 87 percent of Nigerians are still in Nigeria because they have no option and no where to go. Give them an option they will gladly take it. Am starting to see things that my parents told me i will not understand as a kid. Anyway, i got home safely that day. Its seemed to be history but that was just the beginning of my ordeal with the police. During my free time i will share my other experience with you guys

You never see anything,
I once worked in an eatery, a soldier and a civilian fought because they argued that one was before another and all, the soldier so beat the civilian, by the time the police came, the police arrested the civilian, while the soldier still came back to buy food,

I already told my sister to better marry a SOLDEIR unless I won't support the wedding, cos me don't like me people 'putting their mouth on my head' I don't like my human rights being violated

Police people though.... Hmm

pheyhi:
You never see anything,
I once worked in an eatery, a soldier and a civilian fought because they argued that one was before another and all, the soldier so beat the civilian, by the time the police came, the police arrested the civilian, while the soldier still came back to buy food,

I already told my sister to better marry a SOLDEIR unless I won't support the wedding, cos me don't like me people 'putting their mouth on my head' I don't like my human rights being violated

But why your sister and not you?

How is it that the authorities get to recruit these crop of unprofessional individuals? it really does bit my imagination.

.

pheyhi:
You never see anything,
I once worked in an eatery, a soldier and a civilian fought because they argued that one was before another and all, the soldier so beat the civilian, by the time the police came, the police arrested the civilian, while the soldier still came back to buy food,

I already told my sister to better marry a SOLDEIR unless I won't support the wedding, cos me don't like me people 'putting their mouth on my head' I don't like my human rights being violated

hehe ur sist is probabely thinking thesame thing abt u

Na wah oo... this country is seriously having issues... a lot of Nigerians have been complaining about that ilorin road ... maybe we should create an '#' to call the attention of the Nigerian police force...

Lemme see if I can call lalasticlala...

Lala oooo!!!!
Lala oooooo

Lala oooooooooooo

nanauju:

But why your sister and not you?

Cos she's older than me so she should be planning to her married, me still got other better things to do in life than get married right now

pheyhi:



Cos she's older than me so she should be planning to her married, me still got other better things to do in life than get married right now

Oh OK dear. Wishing you all the best

He dey toilet, na lai you for call

tobimillar:
Na wah oo... this country is seriously having issues... a lot of Nigerians have been complaining about that ilorin road ... maybe we should create an '#' to call the attention of the Nigerian police force...

Lemme see if I can call lalasticlala...

Lala oooo!!!!
Lala oooooo

Lala oooooooooooo

i think we got power in the wrong hands... Truth be told.