Police Officer
Augustine Angasei Ekeowei was a notable and astute police officer who eradicated crime from major towns and highways in Nigeria during the 1970s and 1980s.
Synopsis
Augustine Angasei Ekeowei (1939-1993) hailed from Azuzama community in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State. He was an award-winning police officer who fought and conquered crime with vigor. He was best known for his abhorrence of illegality both within and outside his profession. He lived a happy and contented life, irrespective of the meager earnings of the Nigerian Police Force at the time. Augustine Angasei Ekeowei, an Anglican, died in 1993 at the age of 54.
Parents and Birth
Augustine Angasei Ekeowei’s father was Angasei Ekeowei (now late) of Azuzama town, and his mother was Kefini Ekeowei (now late) of Lobia community, all in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State. He was born in October 1939 in Azuzama community in Southern Nigeria. He was the last child of a family of five children. Augustine Angasei Ekeowei came from a humble and lowly background.
Education and Career
Unassuming and humble to a fault, Augustine Angasei Ekeowei attended Bishop Crowther Memorial School, Abonnema, Southern Nigeria (now Rivers State) in the mid-1940s for his primary education and obtained his First School Leaving Certificate. He was quite intelligent and was adjudged to have made the best result at the school.
Unfortunately, Augustine Angasei Ekeowei could not attend any secondary school at the time, probably due to a lack of funds. Throughout the mid-1950s, he lived and planned for his lifelong goal of a career in law enforcement with his maternal uncle, His Highness Chief Jephthah Okowuru Pulotua, a conscientious and kind-hearted policeman in Enugu, Eastern Nigeria.
Chief Pulotua, who died on May 2, 1978, was a benefactor to Augustine Angasei Ekeowei and many other central Ijaws (Lobia, Ukubie, Apoi, Azuzama, etc.) in the 1940s. He assisted Augustine Angasei in being enlisted in the Nigeria Police Force.
In 1960, Augustine Angasei Ekeowei went through the Nigerian Police Training School in Enugu, Eastern Nigeria, and was recruited as a Constable. Thereafter, he was posted to Ukwale in Mid-Western Nigeria from 1960 to 1962. Furthermore, he was in Ibadan, Western Nigeria, for six months in 1962 and was later transferred to Sapele, Bendel State. Consequently, in 1967, he was also transferred to Benin City, also in old Bendel State.
Augustine Angasei Ekeowei was incarcerated during the Nigerian Civil War of 1967 to 1969 due to his refusal to fight for the Nigerian side.
Afterwards, he was released when the civil war ended and was stationed in Lagos, the then capital of Nigeria. In the mid-1970s to the 1980s, he was promoted to District Police Officer (DPO) and was transferred to communities like Andoni, Bonny, Nkoro, Rumukurushi, Rumuokoro, Kaiama, Aleibiri, etc., in the old Rivers State. Then, he was transferred to Airport Police Station Calabar in Cross Rivers State. Lastly, he was transferred to Rivers State again and made Officer-in-Charge of Payment (OC-Pay) at the Police Headquarters, Moscow Road, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, until his untimely death in 1993. Police officer Augustine Angasei Ekeowei rose through the ranks and exited as a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP).
Major Achievements
Augustine Angasei Ekeowei was noted for his intelligence right from his school days and his gallant prowess during his lifetime as a member of the Nigeria Police, which led to his receiving several commendation awards from the Nigeria Police. Some of his other notable achievements, which he often talked about, included his service as an agent provocateur to apprehend some organized armed robbers in Lagos, re-arresting a woman after about 10 years of escape from police custody, gallantly laying a 2-day siege on robbers’ hideout somewhere around Kaiama town (east-west road axis) and successfully apprehending them, etc. Most outstanding of his qualities were his honesty and discipline, which were so glaring and remarkable. He also had a remarkable conviction for his job as a police officer and its invaluable purpose in society. Being a police officer was all he wanted; it was his calling, and he loved his job.
Qualities
He was a meticulous, strict, and honest police officer. Moreover, he ensured conflict matters were professionally handled to conclusion. Augustine Angasei Ekeowei was a workaholic.
Personal Life
Augustine Ekeowei was a polygamist. He married Mrs. Waribukor Ekeowei, his first wife, in 1962 and later married Mrs. Blessing in 1967. He was blessed with 16 dutiful children. He was an amiable guardian and an excellent family architect. Despite his busy schedule as a police officer, he found time to teach his children at home and even checked their academic performances at their various schools. Above all, he lived a contented family life during his sojourn as a police officer, irrespective of the poor salaries of the Nigeria Police Force at the time.
His Faith
Augustine Angasei Ekeowei was a devout Christian who though claimed to be of the Anglican faith, never attended any church or Christian organization regularly, but would always study the bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses, and would regularly teach his children from the scriptures.
Illness and Death
Augustine Angasei Ekeowei died sometime in March 1993 in Port Harcourt, Rivers state after battling with cancer for about four months. He was 54 years old.