TONY JOHN, Port Harcourt
Nigeria, May 03, 2016 – Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Solomon Arise today said that the Nigerian Police Force would clampdown on the people fermenting trouble in the country no matter their positions, warning that nobody has right to take another person’s life.
The IGP made the pronouncement just as he deployed a team of Homicide officers to investigate alleged cult killings in Rivers State.
Arase stated this while flagging off a new uniform for Police Spy at the premises of Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) in Port Harcourt.
He said a marching order has been given to the Commissioner of Police to track down the persons behind killings in the State, stating that a gang of criminals could never overwhelm security forces.
“It is an unacceptable for people to take laws into their hands. This (Nigeria) is not a Hobbesian State where might thrives. And I have told the Commissioner of Police; he must go after whoever that has taken the lives of other people and ensure we bring them to book.
“And, secondly, proliferation of firearms is unacceptable, not only in Rivers State; but, across the length and breadth of the country. This is also reflective of international law. It is a global thing. There must a strategic approach to it.
“We must not allow a gang of criminals to overrun the state. We cannot allow them to overwhelm the state. There is nowhere in the world, where a gang of criminals overwhelm the state. It can never happen. You can be rest assured that we will deal with them.
“Security gangs, cult groups can never overwhelm a state. It is never done. I can assure the people of this country we are going to clampdown on these people. We will arrest them; we will interview them, and we will make sure we prosecute.
Fielding questions from journalists, the IGP warned that nobody has the right to kill fellow human, assuring that the persons behind the dastardly murder in the country in general, would arrested and prosecuted.
He emphasized that policemen should not be partisan, charging them to discharge their duties professionally.
“The killings in Rivers State are being investigated. I have dispatched a team of homicide to the State. You know when a thing like this occurs; there are different perspectives to it.
“And I have always taken a stand that police should be apolitical. We must show professionalism in investigating this matter. And, while I have deployed a team of homicide officers from Abuja; we have to take over most of these cases and ensure they are professionally investigated”.
He warned that nobody was above the law and that law was no respecter of any person, debunking the allegation that Police provided security for a wanted person in the State.
