Lawyers sue military over Southeast checkpoints, demand N5bn damages
Lawyers Aloy Ejimakor, Patrick Agazie and associates filed a class‑action suit at the High Court of Enugu State on 17 June 2026 against the Chief of Army Staff, the Nigerian Army, the Attorney General of the Federation and the Federal Government of Nigeria. They accuse the military of operating indiscriminate checkpoints across Anambra, Enugu, Ebonyi, Imo and Abia states that cause harassment, extortion, arbitrary arrests, torture, enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. The plaintiffs demand N5 billion in exemplary, aggravated and general damages and ask the court to declare the checkpoints unconstitutional, order their immediate removal except where legally authorised, compel the government to set up an independent investigative panel for abuses from 2018 onward, issue a public apology in three national newspapers and on television, and grant a perpetual injunction against future unlawful deployments.
The suit highlights how pervasive roadblocks curtail freedom of movement, inflame ethnic tensions and impose illicit costs on traders and commuters in the Southeast. If granted, the orders could dismantle a long‑standing security practice, reduce illegal levies on transporters and compel the military to revert internal policing duties to the Nigeria Police Force.
What should you know or do? Residents and businesses in the five states should monitor the case’s progress, prepare for possible changes in checkpoint presence, and consider how any reduction—or continuation—of military roadblocks might affect daily travel, trade costs and personal safety.