“I feel that if not for God, I could have lost my life when I was assaulted by the police :Mercy Aigbe

Popular actress, Mercy Aigbe-Gentry, pulled a crowd in Osogbo, Osun State, when she had an altercation with the police few days ago in the state’s capital.

The actress, while narrating her ordeal, said that she has never had such an experience in her life.

“I was shooting a movie in Osogbo and was going for a break with my PA and driver when we saw a police van chasing us. They later double crossed us, came out of their van and started banging on the bonnet of my car ordering us to come down. Before I knew it, there was a crowd and they began to boo the policemen so they called for back-up.

“I was scared for my life when the police surrounded me and began to shoot sporadically, I could have lost my life because I have read on many occasions how people died in a similar scenario. Stray bullet could have hit me. When they started shooting, everybody took cover and I had to quickly lie down in my car. No one has ever pointed a gun at me in my life and I was so scared because anything could have happened.

“We were not expecting a second batch of police to come to the scene of the incident neither did I expect them to shoot into the air. We were about leaving when the second batch of policemen came and began shooting in the air, I did not know what was happening at that point. Everybody had to run away and take cover for their lives. I was really shaking out of fear and it was very visible.“The way they chased my car and ambushed us was very frightening. As I alighted from the car, I brought out my phone and began to record the incident. One of them forcefully took my phone and another slapped my personal assistant because he was also recording with my ipad. I was really scared because I have read a lot about trigger-happy policemen. I did not want the situation to get out of hand because there was a crowd and people began to boo the policemen saying that’s the way they behave, harassing innocent citizens.”The actress said, “I feel that if not for God, I could have lost my life when I was assaulted by the police because when the police slapped my personal assistant he began to ask for his gun and I was really scared. Who knows what he would have done if he was with his gun. I had to tell my PA to keep calm and I had to make sure that everything was under control because I have heard of a lot of similar situation where people lost their lives. I was very scared but I am okay now.”

She emphasised that she was displeased with the attitude of the policemen but thank their boss, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, who she said cautioned his boys, apologised to her and made sure the policemen apologised to her because of their brazen attitude.

“I was disappointed at the police because I believe that as the custodian of the law they should not cause such a commotion and they should not harass citizens. If they are harassing the citizens they are protecting, who would we run to in times of trouble? We are not safe anymore. The police really need to do something about their men and train them properly. I came to the realisation that if a policeman could do that to me then who can we trust, we are not safe anymore because they cannot protect us,” she said.