Victim’s mother: I leave my daughter’s killer to God
Children: We’re all alone now
Five children were on Tuesday, July 17, 2018 orphaned when their mother, a widow was shot dead as policemen protested in Kaduna over the killing of two of their colleagues by armed bandits in Birnin Gwari. Mrs Martha Amos was said to have been shot when one of the protesting policemen fired a shot in agitation.
Daily Trust Saturday gathered that the deceased did not get help immediately she was shot. “People around ran away out of fear and left her was bleeding. By the time help could come, she had bled to death,” a source said.
Late Mrs. Amos had worked as a cleaner in the ACA’s office for eight years before she met her untimely death. It was gathered that she had been the pillar of her family since her husband, an indigene of Bauchi State, died in 2009.
A source close to the Police Headquarters said the police from Birnin Gwari started rampaging immediately they got to the front of the HQ. “They started shouting and harassing civilian passersby. They even beat some of their colleagues who were in mufti. Later on, they started shooting in the air and somehow, a bullet hit the innocent widow,” the source said.
Another source told Daily Trust Saturday that apart from protesting the killing of their colleagues by bandits, they were also raging over non-payment of their allowances for some months now.
Chondgah Amos, the first of the five children of the deceased just concluded her national diploma from Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi. She said her late mother was a civilian staff with the Nigeria Police Force. “My mother was promoted from level three to five, so she went for evaluation at the HQ, when mobile policemen began their protest. On hearing the gunshots, she ran out, out of fear, and that was when a bullet from nowhere hit her,” she said, tearfully.
The sudden and painful death of Chongdah’s mother brought back the memory of her father who died nine years ago after battling with an illness. He was a corporal in the Nigeria Police. “His benefits have been paid, but we are yet to get his accruals. My mother was all we had since, and now she has been killed. We’re all alone. I’m confused; I don’t even know what to do,” she said, visibly distraught.
Chongdah appealed for help. “It is obvious, I am now the father and mother to my younger ones, and I am not working. I just finished National Diploma programme, so government should please come to our aid. The youngest child of my mother is 13, while the one before him just got admission into Kaduna Polytechnic and was to begin her registration on Monday. Now we don’t know where to start from,” she said.
Sympathizers have continued to throng the residence of the deceased, lamenting the situation that led to her death, and calling on government to put in place measures to end such occurrences.
The children described their late mother as a patient, gentle, and God-fearing woman. They also noted that the remains of their mother is in police custody, as investigation is said to be ongoing.
Mrs. Amos’s aged mother could not hold back her tears, saying the incident is burning her heart. While she begged government to help her take care of her orphaned grandchildren, she added: “I leave my daughter’s killer to God.”
The deceased’s youngest daughter, Naomi, who has been sick since the incident, is yet to recover from shock. “My mother, after praying with us on Tuesday, advised us all and told us she was going to work. I never knew that was going to be her last day on earth. She promised me she was going to try her best to raise money so that I can begin my registration, but now I cannot see her again. She had been our all since our father died. Where do we turn to now?” she sobbed.
Christiana Benjamin, the younger sister to the late Mrs. Amos, told Daily Trust Saturday that her sister was the only one she had, and now she is all alone. “When I saw her remains on the floor, my heart bled,” she sobbed.
Christiana expressed worry over the carelessness of policemen, saying there is need for training and retraining. “The police are supposed to protect the citizens, and not to kill them. And must they kill someone to show that they are angry? This is unacceptable,” she said.
