Politicians Are To Be Held Responsible For Violence In Rivers Election, Not Police

The Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase, has denied claims that the police favoured the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) during Saturday’s National and State Assembly re-run elections in Rivers state.

Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase

The IG, who also absolved the police of blame in the violence that greeted the rerun polls, maintained that the force discharged its duties professionally.

He spoke to journalists in Abakaliki during his one-day working visit to the Ebonyi State Police command.

“It is not the police that ignite violence; it is the political class that ignites violence. All we do is to ensure we secure a conducive environment that can allow law abiding citizens to cast their votes in any election,” Mr. Arase said.

‘’The situation in Rivers has nothing to do with the Police; it has something to do with the political class.

“So, the police was neutral in the Rivers re-run and nobody can accuse us of bias or complicity or conniving with politicians or political party to frustrate the election,” he said.

He called on police officers to be thorough in their investigation and make friends with members of the public for effective community policing.

He maintained his stand on dismantling of road blocks and warned policemen to avoid negative acts that can portray the police in bad light.

On the Ebonyi/Benue/Cross River boundary disputes that have claimed many lives, Mr. Arase said efforts were being made to restore normalcy in the disputed areas.

Earlier, the Ebonyi Commissioner of Police, Peace Ibekwe Abdallah, said the state has witnessed a reduction in criminal activities since she assumed office in September 2015.

She attributed the development to the overhauling and strengthening of the crime prevention strategies of the command.

“Whereas a total of 11 kidnap cases were recorded in 2015 (between Jan-Sept), the three cases of kidnap recorded in the command from September 2015 till date were successfully investigated. The kidnap suspects were arrested and victims rescued without payment of ransom,” she said.

Source: Premium Times