Peter Obi Slams EFCC Over Alleged Use of Teargas at UNIUYO Teaching Hospital
_Secular Advocacy TV News Desk _
Former Labour Party Presidential Candidate and NDC Chieftain Peter Obi has condemned the alleged use of teargas by Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission operatives during an attempted arrest at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital.
In a statement posted on his verified official X, Obi stated that he read “troubling reports” that EFCC operatives stormed the hospital to arrest Prof. Eyo Ekpe, a professor of cardiothoracic surgery and deputy chairman of the hospital’s medical advisory committee. He stated that the operatives “allegedly shot some teargas canisters within the hospital premises which sent medical staff and patients running for safety.”
Obi described the act as unprofessional and pointed out it “greatly compromised the general safety in the hospital environment and further jeopardised the health of the medical personnel and the sick people in the hospital,” while calling it a “thoughtless act.”
Obi emphasised that while agencies are saddled with certain constitutional duties to carry out their mandates, “the manner in which some of these jobs are carried out is often deeply troubling.” He further argued that the rule of law and order is a fundamental asset for any nation, and that “nothing justifies the use of teargas canisters in a fragile hospital environment.”
Noting that Nigeria has only about 80 cardiothoracic surgeons for over 230 million people, with Prof. Ekpe reportedly the only one in Akwa Ibom State, Obi reiterated that such thoughtless arrests in hospitals send the wrong signal to medical professionals.
“Let us learn to do better. Let us condemn and eschew the rascality and disorderliness that have continued to characterise some of our public offices and bring in civility in the discharge of our duties,” he wrote, ending with “A New Nigeria is Possible.”
The EFCC has not issued a public response to Peter Obi s statement as of press time.