NSCDC officials beat up JAMB workers, assault journalists

Pandemonium broke out in Lokoja, the Kogi State capital on Wednesday July 16 when some officials of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC invaded the office of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board in Lokoja and beat up some staff of JAMB, including a married woman by the name Mrs. Victoria Tasiu.

Our Roving National Correspondent reports that apart from molesting the JAMB staff, the NSCDC officials also allegedly assaulted some members of the Nigerian Union of Journalists, Kogi State Correspondents’ Chapel who came to investigate the incident.

It was gathered that the journalists fled when the NSCDC officials threatened them with guns. According to an eyewitness, trouble started when some JAMB staff requested the NSCDC men to leave the JAMB office gate to avoid scaring prospective candidates who had come to purchase JAMB forms. The witness, who pleaded anonymity, stated that the NSCDC officials, who could not comprehend why they should leave, stormed the JAMB office with their weapons.

It was said that they damaged the JAMB gate and forcefully entered the premises and beat up the workers on duty.

The Coordinator, JAMB, Kogi State Office, Mr. Daniel Agbo, told journalists that the NSCDC officials had earlier approached his office and asked that the private security guards attached to the command’s office be sacked.

 According to him, the NSCDC officials alleged that the use of the private security guards was illegal. He added that NSCDC asked that the private guards be replaced with their men.

Agbo said he told them that as a State Coordinator, he had no power to change the private guards, adding that the engagement was done from JAMB head office.

He added that, notwithstanding his reply, he forwarded their request to JAMB head office and was awaiting directives. “To my surprise, while I was discussing with one of the officials of NSCDC, more than 200 of their men invaded my office and started beating every worker on sight, including a married woman, Mr. Victoria Tasiu.  All entreaties I made for them to be civil fell on deaf ear. I was thrown on the floor by the men. My colleague who sells the forms and the scratch cards was dragged from his office. Some amount of money and cards are currently missing,” Agbo said.

When journalists went to the NSCDC state headquarters to get the response of the NSCDC Commander, Kogi State Command, one of the corps officials shouted at the journalists that they could not see the commandant without appointment.

The NSCDC officials reportedly wielded their weapons, making the journalists to run away from the office when they sensed that they were no longer safe.

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