A legal practitioner and human rights activist, Chinedu Agu, Esq., has filed a public interest suit before the Federal High Court, Owerri Judicial Division, challenging the alleged continuous erection and maintenance of roadblocks, barricades, checkpoints and traffic obstructions across major roads in Owerri and other parts of Imo State.
The suit was filed against the Controller-General of Corrections, Nigerian Correctional Service; the Controller of Corrections, Imo State Command; the Inspector-General of Police; the Commissioner of Police, Imo State; the Police Service Commission; the Nigeria Police Force; and the Attorney-General of Imo State.
Agu brought the action pursuant to Sections 33, 34, 41 and 46 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and the Fundamental Rights Enforcement Procedure Rules, 2009.
In the originating motion, the applicant is asking the court to declare the alleged roadblocks and traffic obstructions unlawful, unconstitutional and a violation of the fundamental rights to freedom of movement, life and dignity of the human person.
He also seeks an order directing the respondents to dismantle and remove the roadblocks, barricades and checkpoints complained of, as well as a perpetual injunction restraining them from further erecting or maintaining traffic obstructions in a manner that compels motorists to ply one-way routes.
Agu is further asking the court to award ₦500 million as general and exemplary damages for alleged psychological trauma, inconvenience, distress and risk to life occasioned by the respondents’ alleged actions.
The applicant said the suit was not filed only in his personal capacity but also in public interest on behalf of motorists, road users and members of the public affected by the alleged obstructions.
According to him, the subject matter affects a large class of persons, including daily commuters, transport operators, professionals, car owners, emergency service users and residents of Imo State.
One of the major complaints in the suit concerns the roadblock allegedly mounted in front of the Owerri Correctional Centre along Okigwe Road.
Agu stated that Okigwe Road is a major dual carriage arterial road designed for high-volume, bi-directional vehicular traffic flow within Owerri metropolis and also serves as a central traffic corridor linking Orji axis, Mbari Street axis, Wetheral Road, Bank Road and Government House Junction.
He alleged that officers of the 1st and 2nd respondents have continuously mounted barricades and roadblocks along one carriageway of the road, thereby converting it into a constrained single-lane contra-flow system.
The applicant said the alleged obstruction forces opposing traffic streams into one lane, creating persistent congestion, chaotic merging and a high risk of head-on and lateral collisions, especially during peak morning and evening traffic periods.
He claimed to have personally experienced near-collision incidents at the location, including one occasion where his vehicle was allegedly brushed while navigating the obstruction.
Agu also said he had been trapped in severe gridlock at the point on several occasions, resulting in delayed court appearances and disruption of his professional obligations.
The suit also challenges alleged roadblocks at Bank Road by Government House Junction, Owerri, which the applicant said are mounted from about 6:30 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. daily.
He alleged that the roadblocks are often inadequately signposted, causing sudden lane reductions and forcing motorists into abrupt braking and unsafe manoeuvres.
According to him, commercial vehicles often stop indiscriminately within the narrowed lane to pick or drop passengers, while passengers stand within the carriageway, thereby worsening obstruction and increasing the risk of rear-end collisions and loss of life.
Agu further alleged that officers sometimes step into the narrowed carriageway to stop vehicles, demand money or subject motorists to arbitrary checks, thereby worsening traffic paralysis and exposing road users to danger.
The applicant also complained about the alleged obstruction in front of Umuaka Police Station along the Orlu-Owerri Expressway in Njaba Local Government Area.
He described the expressway as a major high-speed inter-urban corridor connecting several local government areas, alleging that one carriageway is routinely cordoned off by officers, thereby forcing high-speed traffic into an abrupt single-lane configuration.