By Itoro Eti |The Evangelist news
UYO, A disturbing wave of violent robberies involving commercial tricycles, popularly known as Keke NAPEP covered with black tapoline, has left residents of Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, in fear, with many nursing injuries, losses, and in at least one case, mourning the death of a loved one.
Several victims have in recent weeks fallen prey to what is fast becoming a city-wide menace. The trend, which has largely gone unaddressed by security agencies, appears to be gaining momentum across major routes in the metropolis.
A few months ago, a local mechanic narrowly escaped death after he was stabbed during an attempted robbery inside a Keke. His survival was credited to the swift intervention of police officers who rushed him to Lifecare Hospital for emergency treatment.
Just two weeks ago, another resident recounted a harrowing encounter after boarding a Keke from Ring Road Two en route to the Federal Secretariat. Instead of arriving safely, he was violently robbed by armed men pretending to be fellow passengers.
The most recent case occurred Monday morning when Nyangaowonso Okon, a resident, called to announce he had been robbed of his phone and personal effects while commuting along Stadium Road inside a Keke.
“These aren’t isolated incidents,” a concerned resident lamented. “We’re dealing with a pattern, a network of organized crime hiding in plain sight. Yet, the silence from the Police hierarchy is deafening.”
On Saturday evening, the violence escalated beyond the Uyo metropolis, when a robbery incident rocked a community in Ibesikpo Asutan Local Government Area—just two villages away from the State Police Headquarters. Tragically, a victim of the attack reportedly died from gunshot wounds after being rushed to a nearby hospital.
Amid the rising crime wave, public appeals are growing louder. Citizens are urging the Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Transport to immediately initiate biometric re-registration of all Keke operators across the state to aid identification and tracking. Similarly, the Commissioner of Police is being called upon to intensify security patrols, investigate these incidents, and dismantle the syndicates responsible.
“There are many crimes going unreported every day,” the source added. “The government must act before more innocent lives are lost.”
As Uyo residents continue their daily hustle, the question hangs heavy: who will be the next victim if nothing is done?
