Olufunke Phillips took to Facebook to narrate her shocking experience
with trigger happy policemen, while driving past a bank in Surulere,
Lagos this morning. According to her, these policemen who were with a
fellow drunk colleague, shot in the ear repeatedly and an empty
cartridge got into her car. When she went to inquire what warranted the
gunfire, she found out they were merely welcoming a colleague who just
resumed. Read her narration below...
"Driving to work this morning,
I drove past Stanbic IBTC bank in Aguda, next thing I heard were
sporadic gunshots and things hitting my windscreen and
car. Instinctively, I ducked. I didn't know what was going on. I
tentatively looked up and saw the mobile policemen in front of the bank
laughing and hi-fiving themselves and one was cocking his rifle.
I
was stunned. Obviously it must not have been something major, else why
the hell would they be laughing. Something caught my eye on the
passenger seat beside me, I looked and saw a spent
cartridge/shell/whatever it's called on the seat. I recoiled in horror,
turned and drove straight into the bank. I came down and saw 3 other
shells on the partition between the windscreen and the hood cover.
These
policemen were basically shooting at 9am for no reason and their spent
shells were what I heard hitting the windscreen and car. I went to the
bank security officer and asked him why the policemen were shooting. He
said and I quote..."one of them come resume with them so them dey
welcome am"
What I could deduce from the security guy was that
the policemen were welcoming one of their colleague with
gunshots. Wonderful! When did the police start welcoming themselves with
gunshots? Shooting into the air? No robbery in progress? Nothing was
happening. They were just flossing. Welcoming themselves. *smh*
So
I went to the policemen and demanded to know why they were shooting at
9am. Was there a robbery in progress at Stanbic? No. What was
happening? These men looked me in the eye and denied shooting. I was
mad. I showed them the shells and the one that even deigned to speak
with me told me I must have been mistaken. And he was reeking of
alcohol. The remaining three had disappeared when they heard me asking
questions.
So I did the next thing I could think of. I went to
Aguda Police Station to file a complaint. I got there and explained what
happened and showed them the shells even the one on the seat beside me.
Guess what the officer said...
"Madam, why you sef no wind up?"
That's
when I lost it. And the crase I always carefully hide just had to come
out. Oh, it was not a pretty sight. I demanded to see the DPO. I
explained what happened to him and asked a simple question.
"In
the absence of a robbery or interaction with a suspect, is shooting in
the air to greet or welcome a colleague normal police procedure? "
The
DPO apologised and told an officer to call the policemen at the bank
back to the station. The officer came back and said he met no policemen
there. They had all dispersed. I drove back to the bank and asked the
security guy where the policemen were. This guy changed story o. "No be
here dem shoot. I no hear any sound." Even when people around said they
heard the gunshots and had to hide for safety, this stupid buffoon of a
security guy was still lying.
I went into the bank and demanded
to see the BM. When we went out to meet the security man, the fool was
still lying, I told him I recorded his previous conversation with me
where he told me they were shooting to greet their colleague and showed
him a picture of one of the shells, that was when the idiot backpedalled
and admitted that indeed the policemen were shooting. The BM called an
assistant and told him to call the policemen, one now appeared and
started begging.
Long story short. Everybody started begging. I
wasn't here for the begging. I just needed to know why the police would
think it necessary to just shoot in the air for no reason. Anyway, Bank
Manager begged. Police begged. Security guy begged. Bank Manager said
they would write a report to the station. Smh. Police said they would
deal with the guy. *smh*
I ranted, shouted, screamed, popped my
veins, used all the expletives in my dictionary and demanded to know why
my tax money spent to buy bullets was being used to greet their friend
because he resumed work.
As all this was
happening, the irony was not lost on me. Nigeria is shitty but I tore
those mobile police guys a new one. I protested and screamed and shouted
and I didn't have to fear for my life. I was too angry to care. Blacks
in America don't get to question the police. Your skin colour makes you a
suspect. You can be killed because of a busted tail light. You can't
scream and question the police at the police station. Your ass would be
thrown into holding. Heck, they can kill you even when your kids are in
the backseat. During the whole drama, I reached into my bag several
times to pull out my phone, I didn't have to fear that a trigger
happy-power drunk police officer would think I'm reaching for a gun and
shoot me in the chest. Black people in America don't have that luxury
and that's why#BlackLivesMatter. That's why #BlackLives should
Matter. How can you be so scared of living in your own country because
of the colour of your skin? Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.
This morning, I was grateful I live in Nigeria."
Abeg this aunty get mouth die no be small, she get mind too wella lol. To dey very sincere sha, no be lie she talk at all too. but aunty no go dey change am for police anyhow o, no let devil enter the one wey go fire before you fit say jack robinson...
#dontakeitP