Amidst the present political tension, Rivers State’s Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, declared that his men will keep barricading all local government secretariats.
Noting the high standards demanded of officers, he also noted that the current scandal surrounding the recruitment of constables into the force is very disgusting.
On Thursday in Abuja, Egbetokun disclosed this to the media during a meeting with police commissioners and other high-ranking officials.
He revealed that police officers won’t be allowed to leave the headquarters until a court ruling has been made regarding the dispute surrounding the terms of local government council chairs in the state.
According to Egbetokun, the police were not there to threaten anyone but rather to maintain peace and order. The head of police reaffirmed the Nigeria Police Force’s commitment to taking preventative action in order to stop any increase in violence.
He said, “You are all aware that in what happened two-three days ago, we lost a police inspector. We are sad about that. We don’t want to lose more men.
“We don’t want to lose more Nigerians. We don’t want to lose more citizens of Rivers State. So we have a duty to prevent the breakdown of law and order.
“And that’s why we have our men taking over the secretariat while we await the outcome of the case in court.
“As soon as the court makes its pronouncement, we will remove the barricade. Thank you.“
In an effort to stop more violence and maintain law and order, the force command in the state declared on Tuesday that it had taken control of the entire council buildings.
During a fight between the governor’s supporters and those of his predecessor, Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike, at Eberi-Omuma in the Omuma Local Government Area of the state, an operative of the force and a member of a local security organisation were killed.
Speaking on the development, the state commissioner for police, Olatunji Disu, said the LG council headquarters would remain shut for the time being due to the clash between the feuding parties.
