Security Personnel Shielded Me from Lynching, NUPENG President Tells Court

*Says secretary general, PTD chairman not so fortunate Alex Enumah in Abuja

The President of the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), Mr. Williams Akporeha, Wednesday, narrated how security personnel at the Abuja office of the association shielded him from violent attacks that nearly claimed the lives of the union’s Secretary General, Wale Afolabi and the newly elected National Chairman of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) branch of NUPENG, Augustine Egbon.
Akporeha, gave the details while testifying as the second prosecution witness (PW2) in the attempted murder charge brought against 20 former leaders of the PTD branch of NUPENG.
The defendants which included a former PTD National Chairman, Mr. Lucky Osesua, are standing trial on a five-count criminal charge bordering on attempted murder, breach of peace and assault.
They were in the suit, marked: CR/042/2023, alleged to have acted “in a manner likely to cause the death of one Comrade Wiliams Akporeha and Comrade Augustine Egbon”, when they laid siege at PTD’s office at No. 50 Moses Majekodenmi Crescent, Utako District in Abuja on November 1, 2023.
Besides, the defendants were further accused of voluntarily causing grievous bodily harm to Comrade Williams Akporeha, Comrade Olawale Afolabi, Comrade Solomon Kilanko and Comrade Augustine Egbon.

They however pleaded not guilty to all the charge against them.

At the resumed trial on Wednesday, the witness told the court that trouble started shortly after himself, the NUPENG Deputy National President, Solomon Kilanko, Afolabi and Egbon arrived at the PTD office, which served as NUPENG’s Abuja liaison office.

Led in his evidence-in-chief by the prosecution counsel, Mr. David Kaswe, the witness stated that they were curious over a delay in the opening of the gate to the office building, especially with the presence of Osesua, Humble Obinna and Dayyabu Garga, at the entrance of the gate.

He recalled that the three defendants, upon sighting them started shouting and beckoning to others across the road to come quickly, adding that as he and Afolabi stepped out of the car to enter the premises of the office, the defendants started calling them thieves.

“Myself and Afolabi stepped out first and decided to enter the premises through the pedestrian gate. Immediately they saw us, they started shouting and beckoned on others across the road to come quickly,” he told the court.

According to him, as soon as both of them entered the premises, some of the defendants swooped on both of them, adding that while they dragged Afolabi out of the premises, some security there provided human shield for him and took him to the back of the building.

He said as they were prevented from attacking him, all the defendants went for Afolabi, dragged him across the street where they dealt with him mercilessly.

The witness added that while at the back of the building he called his secretary, Mary Okafor who later opened a back door to enable him enter into the building.

He stated that while in the building, he went into the office of the branch chairman of PTD, which is facing the street where the defendants were gathered and were assaulting Afolabi and others.

Akporeha said from where he stood, he was able to see the defendants attacking both Afolabi and Kilanko, adding that two of them held jerry cans, which he suspected contained petrol.

“At a point, I couldn’t see Afolabi and Solomon but I saw blood stains on the road to the office. The defendants were standing on the road brandishing all forms of dangerous weapons and calling on me to come down.

“I became afraid of my life especially when they were saying they will burn down the building.

“I now called the driver Peter Raymond to find out his whereabouts and status of Afolabi and others. He told me that he was on his way to the clinic with Afolabi who was unconscious, heavily bleeding and motionless”, he said.

He went on to tell the court that he was still in the building when the police led by the Divisional Crime Officer (DCO) from Utako police came to rescue him, adding that he instructed that a petition be written to the police narrating the conduct of the defendants, which led to their arrest and present charge against them.

Meanwhile, attempt to tender a copy of the petition was resisted by the defence counsel Christopher Oshiomogie SAN, leading to further adjournment of the matter to November 20, at the instance of the prosecution.