About nine persons, mostly secondary school boys,
have been apprehended by operatives of the Nigerian
Police for organizing India hemp festival in Kwara
State.
No fewer than nine youths, mostly secondary school
boys, have been arrested for organising India hemp
festival in Kwara State.
Checks revealed that the arrested persons whose
names could not be ascertained at the time of filling
this report on Tuesday were “secondary school age”.
A source at Adewole Divisional police station, said that
the culprits were rounded up in Aiyetoro ASA Dam area
of Ilorin, on Tuesday.
However there were conflicting reports whether they
have been charged to court or still with the police.
While a police source said they have been taken to
court others said that they have opted to stay in the
police custody.
Although, Kwara State Police Commissioner, Lawan
Ado, said he was not aware of the development, his
Public Relations Officer, Ajayi Okasanmi, confirmed the
incident.
According to Okasanmi, “I have just received the report
and I cannot confirm the number of those that were
arrested. It happened under the jurisdiction of the ‘D’
Division under Adewole but by tomorrow (Wednesday),
the issue will be clearer,” he said.
It was gathered that those arrested had circulated
posters informing people about the event but rebuffed
calls by prominent citizens and organisations to call it
off.
Speaking on the development, National President of
Ilorin Emirate Descendant Progressive Union (IEDPU),
Alhaji Abdulhamid Adi, says, “About few days ago, the
organisers pasted posters informing that they wanted
to hold an Indian hemp festival where they will smoke
hemp for a whole day."
“When we heard of it, we wrote them that they should
not do such and also informed the police who also
wrote to them but they insisted.
“On the said day, they started smoking hemp and the
police swung into action and arrested nine of them.
Since then, we have been having pressures from high
quarters to release them but we refused.
“We later gave them three options which include for
them to be handed over to NDLEA for them to be
rehabilitated; for them to be locked up with the police
and charged to court the following day but they opted
for the last option,” Adi disclosed.
