Abia State Government has appealed to suspected hoodlums who looted the medical equipment at the Abia State Dental Center, Aba, and Primary Health Authority office in Aba South Local Government Area to return them within seven days.
A statement by the Commissioner for Information in the state, Chief John Okiyi-Kalu, stated that the hoodlums who hijacked the otherwise peaceful #EndSARS protests took away vaccines, X-ray machines, sterilizers, air conditioners, fans, and other equipment as well as disposables and consumables carted away.
The statement directed the looters to return the stolen items to the office of the Special Adviser to the Governor on Health Matters, Mr Joe Chinwendu, with information on the location of the items.
The statement read, “Kindly note that most of the Primary Health Care and Dental equipment are trackable and will certainly be recovered in due course if not voluntarily returned.
“Members of the public are hereby warned not to buy or use any of the stolen items or procure such items from unauthorised persons to avoid getting into trouble with the law”.
#EndSARS protest to resume soon – Group
A coalition of Civil Society Organisations based in Enugu State, on Thursday, said #EndSARS/#EndPoliceBrutality protest would continue in the state.
Addressing journalists on behalf of 14 Civil Society Organisations at a press briefing, Executive Director, Heroine Women Foundation, Onyinye Mamah, said there was no date yet for the commencement of new rounds of protests.
Mamah said that “the protests this time around will be very peaceful as the previous ones before they were rudely infiltrated and interrupted by sponsored thugs.”
She also said as soon as the curfew declared by the government is lifted and as soon as the panel of inquiries set up over allegations of police brutality completes their job, the protests would erupt again.
“If the government meets the demands of the protest, there will be no need for more protests. We want peace. Violence cannot achieve anything. The government should be open to us,” she added.
While calling for peace, she said, “We would have achieved a lot if violence had not crept into the protest. We’ll not destroy a society we are trying to build. I implore us to ensure peace.
“I appeal to us to be calm over what we are clamouring for. This is a call for a peaceful protest because we are going to continue but we are not going to do it like hoodlums. It is a call for a peaceful protest.
“We wanted to achieve reform. If we lose one person, we lost. We must die well, old, and in peace not in violence, social disruption or anarchy or as a result of a failed government.
“Violence has never given any good result. If we had continued just the way we started, we would have achieved a lot. Now, we have socially disrupted the same nation we have been struggling to build.”