Timothy Olanrewaju, Maiduguri
No fewer than 52 commercial sex workers and 10 male suspects have been arrested during a raid on some brothels and drug peddling spots, in Maiduguri, Borno State.
Commissioner of Police, Damian Chukwu, told Daily Sun that a state government team with the police raided some hotels and brothels at Galadima area of the metropolis, on Wednesday.
He said the raid was part of the authority move to halt crimes and threats particularly drug abuse and other crimes.
According to Chukwu, “The State team in collaboration with the state security council raided hotels, brothels and flashpoints in Maiduguri to rid the city and its environs of menace of brothels, commercial sex workers, drug abuse and attendant threat to security,” he disclosed.
The arrest came as state government moved to knock down all the hotels and brothels in the Galadima area of the city suspected to be harbouring sex workers, drug peddlers and other nefarious acts. The owners of the structure in the area have been given quit notice, government sources said.
Meanwhile, owners of the brothels and hotels in the area have appealed to the state government not to demolish their property. They asked for more time to recoup the fund invested in their business which they claimed, were loans from banks.
“We put these structure and the business with loan from banks. Many of us have stayed here for over 40 years.The land was given to us by the Nigerian Railway Corporation unknown to us that it belongs to Borno government,” leader of the affected hotel owners, Chief Amachi Onwudinjo said at a press conference, on Thursday.
He said they were not out to contest the land with government but pleading for leniency. He said the economy of about 300 families will be “badly affected” should government proceed with its demolition plan.
“We are not competing witI government but pleading for assistance to allow us put tenants in the place for some time so that we can get back our monies which are loans from bank,” he said.
