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Friday

DSS Officials & Lawyers on Free-For-All Tussle In Awka


A mild drama played out Friday between men of the Department of the State Security Service DSS and lawyers which has since been described as a national embarrassment and shameful bickering over an alleged show of power between the men of the bar and DSS operatives in Awka.
On investigation, it was gathered that a yet to be identify DSS official allegedly mal-handled a 57-year-old lawyer at the Awka South Magistrate Court entrance, where the later was said to use the untarred road that lead to the court, without negotiating to know  if an oncoming saloon car was driving out of the court premises.

It was learnt that the DSS officer was sighted to disembark from the 406 saloon car number, EBONYI AJ-716-AKL allegedly forced the lawyer to make way for him to exit before he move beyond his position, but the lawyer was reported not to heed to the call.
The DSS of
ficer, whose name was not given as at the time of filling this report, ordered his aide to pummeled the lawyer , according to witness said ‘’ lawyers are stupid people’.
Decorum was however thrown into the waste bin when an armed DSS officer descended on the 57-year-old lawyer and panebited him till he was later rescued by the alarm of a fellow lawyer, before it later ended in a free-for-all at the instance of an ongoing court session.
Trouble started when the SSS operative, who wore a sky-blue suit, parked his vehicle in front of the court, at an untarred road where could only accommodate one vehicle at a time before other lawyers in the courtroom came out to join their colleague that had already been battered by the DSS orderly with allegation of using the back of a gun and machete. 
Speaking in defence of the lawyers, the representative of Awka South Nigeria Bar Association NBA chairman, Barrister G.C Anekwe condemned the attack on lawyer by the security officers, described the act as uncivil, and assured that his men will rest in any form.
He said, ‘’One man said he works with the SSS, he saw a lawyer blowing horn, maybe the lawyer is not fast to hear him he then came out of his car and ordered his aide to beat up a lawyer with machete, he messed up the lawyer for no reason’.
‘It has not happened before here, we were surprised this morning, he said he is the Director of SSS, its very unfortunate’’ Anekwe lamented.
Another witness Barrister Stanley Agwu, aledged that the information they gathered was that the DSS officer had been terrorizing people around that vicinity and narrated how he instructed his orderly to batter the old lawyer;
‘’I am a witness, when the man who parked the car came and was about removing his car, the person who identified himself as a director of SSS whom I know is impersonating came out, ask the man why did he park here, I asked the man to just take is easy, he said I should get away, am a stupid person, he said all lawyers are idiot and this is what they do now and then and that we are charge-and-bail lawyers.
‘When the man wanted to go and remove his car, he now asked the man why did he pack here, the man said there are cars everywhere, would I carry my car on the head I managed to park here, the man almost opening his car to remove his car, the man ordered his boy to descend on him, they used both what the man was having and machete the boy was carrying, they descend on the man, they battered the man an old lawyer of 37-years at the bar.
I went inside the court alerted lawyers to come out to enable us treat this injustice once an for all’’ Agwu said.
They however called on relevant authorities to wade into the matter to forestall further occurrence,
fforts to speak with the Director DSS Anambra state was proved abortive, also the  Public relation officer of the police phone number was not reachable.




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