Nearly three weeks after the Toyota Hummer bus belonging to the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Rivers State, was stolen by armed robbers, the correspondents are urging the state police command to intensify action towards recovery of the vehicle.
They called on the Commissioner of Police, Eboka Friday, to mobilise men and resources towards a more intensive search for possible discovery and recovery of the bus.
In a press release issued by Mr Amaechi Okonkwo, chairman; and Chidi Ohalete; secretary of the Correspondents’ Chapel of the NUJ Rivers State, the chapel expressed surprise that despite the efforts of the police and other security agencies, nothing has been heard about the bus.
According to the release, the continued absence of the bus has caused untold hardship to members of the chapel and the entire NUJ family in Rivers State as the bus which was donated to the correspondents in 2016 had always been of great assistance to the group both in their official and social engagements within and outside the state.
“This bus was donated to the Correspondents’ Chapel by the State Governor, Chief Nysom Wike, some time in 2016. Unfortunately, on the early hours of March 11, 2022, armed robbers broke into the premises of our Chairman, Amaechi Okonkwo, who had the custody of the vehicle, and stole the vehicle along with other family belongings like cash, telephone and jewelries”, the astatement said.
It added that despite all steps adopted by both the NUJ and the security agencies, the vehicle is yet to be recovered nor any of the armed robbers arrested.
Recall that on Friday, March 11, 2022, a group of armed robbers numbering four, broke into the home of Mr Amaechi Okonkwo, chairman of the Correspondents’ Chapel, and robbed them of several personal belongings, including the Toyota Hummer bus with registration number NUJ 001 CC/RV.