Kaduna removes roadblocks at boundaries, alleges extortion by security agents

Kaduna State Government has directed the removal of roadblocks at the various boundaries of the state and has ordered relevant agencies to dismantle and relocate the barricades that enforced the ban on interstate travel.
In a statement issued by the Special Adviser on Media and Communication, Mr Muyiwa Adekeye on Monday evening, the government also said that ‘’boundary patrols undertaken by state government officials as part of the quarantine regulations have also stopped forthwith.’’
According to Adekeye, ‘’clearly, the prohibition of interstate travel by the Federal Government as part of Covid-19 containment efforts has largely been observed in the breach by the people charged with enforcing it,’’ he lamented
The statement said that ‘’these decisions are based on the recommendation of the State Taskforce on Covid-19 following a review of the situation the state boundaries, as the state emerges from partial lockdown.’’
‘’The state government has received reports of persistent extortion of vehicles conveying essential goods by some security officials, thus complicating an already challenging period,’’ he added.
The Special Adviser said that the ‘’State Taskforce on Covid-19 noted that the prohibition of interstate travel has been consistently implemented only when state government officials have been deployed to the entry points.’’
‘’While insufficient to stop the influx of persons, these exertions by senior officials were a necessary sacrifice to help reduce the chances of Covid-19 spread through interstate travel,’’ Adekeye said.
Adekeye revealed that ‘’officials on boundary duty consistently reported at best lacklustre or perfunctory cooperation by security agencies in enforcing the interstate travel ban.’’
The statement noted that ‘’while non-essential travel has been wantonly indulged at the state boundaries, there are reports of continued extortion by some security agents of vehicles transporting essentials goods.
According to the Special Adviser, ‘’the conduct of such officials is also jeopardising the timely and cost-effective delivery of essential goods.’’
‘’Therefore, the Kaduna State Government has directed that roadblocks at state boundaries be dismantled. Henceforth, the only roadblocks authorised within the state are those that are mounted to enforce the 8pm-5am curfew,’’ he added.