Reactions as police places restrictions on drinking of alcohol in Benue state

Beer Palour operators in Makurdi, the Benue State capital, have lamented what they described as a clampdown on their business.

The Managing Director at The Grill Bar, a popular beer joint also known as “Old School Bar” in High Level Area of Makurdi, Mr. Peter Hir, told The Next Edition that the police in Benue began clampdown on them without prior notice, a situation which is affecting their business.

According to him, such action from the police will not only destroy their businesses but will put a lot of youths in the unemployment market and also cripple the state economically.

He said “In Benue state, there are no industries anymore, the ones we had have all left the state. Farming too is on the lowest ebb and the biggest industry in Benue now is the hospitality industry.

“The bars, night clubs and beer palours are the largest employers of labour. Now, they want to cripple it.

Mr. Hir named places The Grill, Woodland Park, Skyford Bar, Fish World, District 4 Club, City Bay Park as some of the places keeping Makurdi night life alive, while pointing out that the Benue state capital will become a village if that is maintained.

“This also means that in the next three to four days, we have to lay off many staff. At The Grill, I have up to 37 staff and if this happens, a minimum of 30 would have to be laid off. This is because people start coming into my bar by around 9p.m to 9:30p.m and the police is saying we should close by 10p.m.

“Are we not worried that this will put many youths in the unemployment market and by that, the insecurity they are fighting will increase.

“Since Thursday and Friday, they are insisting no bar should open beyond that time. All we heard was the restrictions about motorcycles and now it includes bars. Are we in a shariah state? Under what law are they doing that?

“The police want to cripple the state economically. Closing every bar by 10a.m will turn Makurdi into a village”, he said.

A worker at the bar in City Bay Park who didn’t want to be named also complained that the timing is not favourable for their kind of business. He noted that most fun seekers come to the bar late and closing by 10p.m will not be good for the business.

“Most people close late from work or business and that is when they begin to come to the bar. Some come around 8:30 and 9p.m. Most beer palours pay their attendants based on the volume of sales recorded.

He urged the police authorities to find a way of implementing the restriction so that the youths who depend of the income from the bars will not be put out of work.

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, (PPRO), DSP Catherine Anene, said the command is only implementing the liquor act, which has been in existence.

Anene said, “there is a liquor act which stipulates that people who sell beer or alcohol in beer palours and open places shouldn’t be there beyond 10p.m. That is part of the law, there are other provisions of the law.

“But in Benue for a long time now, people sell alcohol beyond 10p.m and some till the next day. So when the new commissioner came, he said that will encourage crime. When people drink so much even beyond the normal hours, they begin to misbehave and it encourages crime.

“So we want to enforce liquor act and that is why we started enforcing the act. The act has been there but there was no enforcement,” she added.

According to her, on his arrival in the state, CP Audu Madaki, had directed the Divisional Police Officers (DPOs) in the state to invite beer palour operators within their areas and find out if they have license to sell beer and if they understand what the act says about sale of alcohol generally.

“It is believed that the DPOs must have done that at their levels particularly within Makurdi metropolis. They spoke with them for two weeks and now started enforcement. So, everybody selling alcohol should know that there is liquor act and you must have licence to be able to sell alcohol”, she said.