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Tag: Ibrahim Idris

  • Crisis: IGP deploys special force to Ile-Ife

    The Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, has deployed a Police Special Intervention Force (SIF) to Ile-Ife, Osun State, to restore lasting peace in the area.

    The Force Spokesman, Jimoh Moshood, said on Thursday in Abuja that the SIF would be led by Commissioner of Police in charge of Police Mobile Force (PMF), Force Headquarters.

    He said the SIF comprises five units of PMF, specially trained Anti- Riot Policemen, five cells of Counter Terrorism Unit, and Conventional Policemen.

    Others are Special Anti- Robbery Squad, Intelligence Response Team, Technical Intelligence Unit (SIB), detachment of EOD and Police K9 (Sniffer Dogs Section).

    He said the operations of SIF will cover entire Ile-Ife and environs and other flashpoints in the state.

    Moshood said members of SIF were on the ground, working in synergy with the police command in the state to ensure total peace and normalcy.

    The police spokesman said to achieve success in the operations, the Force would be proactive and strict in the enforcement of its mandate.

    “The Force will ensure full enforcement of the curfew imposed on Ile-Ife and environs by the Osun Government,” he said.

    NAN

     

  • FG assures of seamless operation at Kaduna airport

    FG assures of seamless operation at Kaduna airport

    The Federal Government on Monday announced its readiness to ensure seamless operation at Kaduna International Airport as Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja closes on March 8 for runway repairs.

    The Minster of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, disclosed this during a World News Conference organided by the ministry in Abuja.

    The news conference featured the Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi; Minister of State, Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika and the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahi Idris.

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, was also represented at the news conference.

    Mohammed said the Acting President had inspected Kaduna airport and the rail station to ascertain the level of readiness to ensure smooth operation during the six-week closure period.

    He said that the summary of the findings during the inspection was that even though the airport might not be 100 per cent ready, its current state was suitable enough for the operation.

    The minister also disclosed that the repair work on the Abuja-Kaduna highway had been completed to ensure smooth passage for Abuja bound passengers.

    “As you are all aware, the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja will shut from the midnight of Tuesday March 7 to the Wednesday March 8 for the purpose of repairing the failed portion of the airport runway.

    “During that time, Abuja flights will be diverted to Kaduna.

    “On Friday, the Acting President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo inspected the Kaduna airport and the railway station to ascertain the state of readiness.

    “The summary of the finding is that while the airport may not be 100 per cent ready, by the time Abuja airport is shut, it will indeed be suitable enough,’’ he said.

    Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, said the government had concluded arrangements to provide free transportation service for Abuja-bound passengers to and from Kaduna.

    Amaechi said that the train services would be rearranged to suit the flight schedules at Kaduna airport, adding that the train would be coming from Kaduna instead of the current arrangement.

    He said the Kaduna airport runway was in perfect shape, adding that it was a portion of the terminal building that was yet to be completed as at Friday.

    According to him, the work was nearing completion as at that day and the contractor promised to deliver it before the deadline.

    The Minister of State, Aviation, Sirika, craved the indulgence of air travelers to bear with the government on the closure.

    He said that the decision was for safety reasons, which is the key word in aviation sector.

    The minister said the part of the Kaduna airport terminal building had been completed as at this morning, adding that much work had been done to ensure smooth operation.

    According to him, the ministry has provided a dedicated website (www.abujaairportclosure.info) to update airport users on the operations at Kaduna during the period.

    Sirika said the government had no other option than to shut the Abuja airport runway considering the level of dilapidation that had made it to fail completely.

    He said that Kaduna airport would remain a seasonal international airport even after the six weeks period until it met the requirements to be a designated international airport.

    According to him, Ethiopian Airline is the only foreign airline that has expressed its readiness to fly the airport so far but at the end we expect more to operate the airport.

    The minister reiterated the government’s plan to concession all the airports for efficiency beginning from the big four such as Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt.

    “We have already concluded the arrangement for the appointment of transaction adviser that will commence work in a matter of weeks,’’ he said.

    The Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, assured that the police had made adequate security plans to ensure seamless operation between Abuja and Kaduna airports.

    Idris said the police force had enough capacity and capability to carry out efficient surveillance on the road, the rail line and air during the six weeks.

    According to him, he was in Kaduna on Sunday to conduct assessment of security in the airport, on the road and the rail at Jere and Idu stations.

    “In the whole, our deployment on the ground is perfect because we have the various units of the Nigeria Police Force in charge of specialized units.

    “We have the force Explosive Ordinance Department (EOD), we have the force animals in charge of dogs; we have the patrolling team and the mobile force as well as the air wing.

    “As I stated, all the units are deployed fully on ground,’’ he said.

     

  • Airport diversion: IGP assures air passengers of maximum security

    Airport diversion: IGP assures air passengers of maximum security

    The Inspector General of Police,(IGP) Ibrahim Idris, has on Sunday assured air transport passengers being diverted to the Kaduna International Airport of maximum security.

    Idris gave the assurance following his inspection of security facilities in the airport.
    According to him, the force has deployed men and equipment required to perform their work including vehicles and helicopters for surveillance.

    “We mobilised men from different units of the force, counterterrorism and anti bomb squads to man security points within and outside airport.

    “We have also deployed sniffer dogs in all the nook and cranny of the airport to ensure adequate security on the issue of movement of passengers from Kaduna to Abuja.

    “We are covering all the highway from Kaduna to Abuja and other roads linking  the town.

    “We will provide security for all the vehicles to be provided by the Federal Government as charter vehicles.

    ”We will equally provide security at railway stations. The Police will give effective security throughout the period of operations.”

    The IGP said synergy with the airport authority was commendable and assured foreigners of their safety.

  • Police to construct 25,000 housing units for personnel

    The Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, on Saturday said the Force is partnering with some private developers to provide 25,000 housing units for its personnel across the country.

    Idris stated this while addressing new recruits at the Police Training School (PTS) in Sokoto.

    “The houses will be provided in partnership with some private developers, including Shelter Afrique, an arm of the African Union.

    “This is part of efforts to address the housing deficit that has been plaguing the Nigerian Police Force for so long.

    “This is also to make barracks across the country more habitable,’’ the IGP said.

    According to him, officers and men of the force will be proud owners of these new houses to spring up soon across the country.

    “Accommodation is key to motivating the officers and men to be more diligent, patriotic and productive,’’ Idris added.

    He, however, warned the personnel to avoid corruption at all levels in order to “stay out of trouble.”

    NAN

  • Southern Kaduna: IGP deploys Special Forces to flush out killers

    Following the renewed attacks on communities in Kaura and Jema’a local government areas of Kaduna, the Inspector- General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, has ordered immediate deployment of police Special Forces to the area.

    He directed the forces to as a matter of urgency flush out perpetrators of the violence wherever they are and restore peace in the area.

    The IGP, according to a statement issued by Kaduna State Commissioner of Police, Agyole Abeh, equally directed the aerial surveillance of the area by the Police Air Wing so as to detect movement of criminal elements who in most cases are responsible for attack on remote farm settlements

    The statement said, “In view of the renewed feuds in Southern Kaduna, the Inspector- General of Police, Ibrahim K. Idris NPM, MNI has ordered the deployment of Police Special Forces to put an end to the renewed wave of clashes in some communities in Southern Kaduna.

    “The Special Forces have a mandate to ensure that they flush out perpetrators of the violence wherever they are and restore peace in the area within the shortest possible time.

    “The Inspector General of Police further directed the aerial surveillance of the area by the Police Air Wing so as to detect movement of criminal elements who in most cases are responsible for attack on remote farm settlements.

    “He further reiterated the force commitment in ensuring security in the area.

    “The Force is therefore determined to deal decisively with any person or group of persons who are either engaged or found to be fueling the amber of discord among peace loving people of Kaduna State as they will be made to face full wrath of the law.”

  • Rivers Rerun: Balance of N360million alleged bribed used to buy cars, others

    Rivers Rerun: Balance of N360million alleged bribed used to buy cars, others

    What happened to the balance of the N360m outstanding balance of the money allegedly used to influence the outcome of the Rivers State senatorial election rerun?

    The source said the money was used to buy choice vehicles’, houses and renovate some other ones.

    A 15-man panel set up by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris had last week come out with a report that indicted the Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike.

    The panel claimed that it recovered N111.3million from N360million alleged to have been given to 23 officials of INEC.

    Giving an update on the findings of the panel, a source close to the investigation who pleaded anonymity said: “The panel recovered discovered that some of them bought houses, cars and even renovated their existing houses with the money.

    “The panel also discovered that some gave out money to their relatives while some others invested money. Several cars were recovered and they would be tendered during prosecution in court.

    The Source further gave more insight on what the panel unraveled during investigation.

    He said: “In the audio tape that went viral, the governor was mentioning 8,8,7; and what he was referring to was the officials of INEC. He gave the leaders of the INEC officials from the three states, N20million each.

    “They brought outsiders for the election because they wanted neutral body to ensure transparency but they were bribed by the governor. They were 23 in number, eight came from Osun or Oyo, eight from Plateau and seven from Anambra state.

    “If you listened to the tape that went viral, you will discover that there was a part where the governor was shouting, kill them because they didn’t do their work well. The three states where officials came from have a leader. The leaders were the ones that were given N20million and others were given N15qwmillion. So, it was the leaders that he was threatening to kill.

    “As mentioned by the IG, the report will be sent to the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami (SAN) will now go through it and necessary action will be taken against those indicted. He is the Chief Law of the Federation.

    On whether the report was doctored and if it was just a political move to tarnish the image of the governor who belongs to the opposition party, the source said: “where did the police get the huge amount of money from? Those cars and houses recovered, where did the panel get it from? Is it police money or something?

    “23 people have been arrested and they all confessed. It was through them that the money was recovered; it was through them that the cars were also recovered. The 23 people arrested, the panel have their video confessions and they all wrote their official statement with their hand. They are all educated people and they used their own handwriting to write their confession and they also talked on video. They videos will be provided during prosecution.

    “All documents are available on how they were summoned to the government house, how they were given the money inside the government house and how vehicles were brought to them to move with the Ghana Must Go bags, and how they were moved to their hotels. Everything was confessed to on video.

    “This is not a political issue. This is a case where money that was supposed to be used to build schools, hospitals, roads and others social amenities have been squandered. So, whoever does wrong will be made to carry his or her cross irrespective of political affiliation.

    “So, that is the true position of everything. Everything is there and all the people that the money were recovered from are alive, they confessed both in written form and in videos.

    On why they were not presented to the press that time, the source simply said: “we could not present them that time because they are INEC staff and they are yet to be dismissed. Also, we want the Attorney General to take action first before they would be interviewed but all evidences are on ground. It is a very clear case”.

  • Kidnapping is beyond Police says, IGP

    Kidnapping is beyond Police says, IGP

    The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris has said the fight against kidnapping in the country is beyond the Nigeria Police.

    He said the fight would only be won if emphasis is placed on community policing.

    The Police chief also noted that security challenges presently confronting the country can be tackled if funding of the Force, and recruitment of officers into the Nigeria Police Force is properly addressed.

    The IGP also disclosed that the Force would soon organize a Security Summit that will help address the issue of kidnapping in the country.

    It was also revealed that beyond arrest of suspects, the police would intensify efforts in the prosecution of suspects in court.

    The Police chief said this in Abuja Wednesday during a meeting with Deputy Inspector General (DIGs), Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIGs), Commissioners of Police and other senior officers.

    On the spate of kidnapping in the country with the latest victim being a Retired Director of State Security Service, Mike Ejiofor, the IG said: “Security is everybody’s business, both the police and the citizens. The kidnappers live amongst the people and that is why I said we are going to conduct a security summit to address most of the security challenges we are witnessing in this country.

    “With the issue of kidnapping, what is obvious is that we cannot have policemen in every soil and that is why we always say that security is everybody’s business. Those communities around where kidnapping take place, if you suspect anybody, report to police because we have our presence in every Local Government of this country and they are ready to do their work.

    The IG who also admitted that the rate of kidnapping was worrisome said: “it is becoming a worrisome situation and that is why we are trying to mobilize all sectors of the society to sit and address the issue of kidnapping.

    “It goes beyond the role of police, it has gone beyond the role of community leaders, it has gone to the role of religious leaders, roles of people in schools and the kind of schools we enroll our children. I think these are things we need to address and I believe that with concerted efforts, we are going to see an end to kidnapping in this country.

    on other security measures put in place to tackle security threats in the country, the IG said: “From our own end, we are trying to widen the scope of providing the security structures in various Commands to be able to effectively tackle security challenges in this country and we have gotten a lot of offers in the areas of establishment of Mobile Police Squadrons.

    “We established two Mobile Police Qquadrons; in Kafanchan and Minna and these measures are geared towards having structures on ground that can assist in addressing some of the security challenges we are having especially in the area of herdsmen, cattle rustling, ethnic and religious clashes we are experiencing in various parts of the country”.

    On the essence of the oncoming summit, Idris said: “We are coming up with the summit because we want to discuss on a general platform how we are going to address some of the security issues. The reality is that you must have seen most of our presentation; when I went to Defence College, I told them that we can succeed with the issue of community policing when we address the ratio of one policeman to 400 citizens of this country.

    ‘The summit will cover traditional rulers, religious leaders, and every sector of the Nigerian community and that is an indication that security is everybody’s business; we all have a say in the security of this country because it requires joint effort”.

    On the need to recruit more workforce, the police chief said: “Recruitment of Rank and File in this country stopped since 2010 and there is no way we can have an effective policing if we don’t have enough policemen to police the population and that is one of the areas  we are addressing now.

    “This administration has come up with the recruitment of 10,000 police officers and we are going to ensure that every year, we address the issue of recruitment and these are strategic issues that should be addressed in order to tackle effectively the efficiency of the Nigeria Police Force.

    The IG who lamented on the funding of the Force, said: “the police need more funding for it to perform more effectively and we believe that the Security Trust Fund which is before the National Assembly should be given speedy attention because I believe that should be the concern of every Nigerian now.

    “In this country, they have created virtually new security outfits, I think the latest is in the pipeline which is Peace Corp instead of creating additional outfit, people still refer to the police to take care of every security challenge in this country and I believe it is time for us to address the requirement of the Nigeria Police Force so that we can effectively tackle security challenges in this country”.

    On prosecution of suspects arrested and paraded, the IG said: “We will be focusing on prosecution of suspects arrested because in the past, when we make arrest, we go on air and talk but we don’t follow up on prosecution and I have directed that henceforth, we are going to give a lot of publicity to prosecution so that people can follow the trend of how some of these people have been dealt with in the Law court which will serve as deterrent to others that would want to take similar step and that will send a signal that being involved in kidnapping does not pay.”

  • Corruption: Osinbajo meets Magu, Idris, DSS chief, others

    Corruption: Osinbajo meets Magu, Idris, DSS chief, others

    Acting President Yemi Osinbajo on Thursday night held a closed-door meeting with heads of security and anti-corruption agencies over fight against corruption in the country.

    Some top government officials also attended the meeting.

    The meeting, which lasted about two hours, ended around 8:00 p.m.

    Those at the meeting were the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, Inspector- General of Police, Ibrahim Idris,  Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, the Chairman of Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Ekpo Nta.

    Also at the meeting were the Director -General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Lawal Daura, Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu ‎and the Director-General of Nigeria Processing Zone Authority (NIPZA).

    Details of the meeting were unknown at the time of filing this report.‎

    Some heads of the anti-graft agencies had earlier met with the Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, before meeting with Osinbajo.‎

    Kyari had also separately met with the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), ‎Godwin Emefiele and the Minister of Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah.

    Speaking with State House correspondents after the meeting, Magu blamed corruption for the current recession in the country.

    He said “I’m asking all Nigerians to join in the fight against corruption. Adults, children, men, women and you journalists. Corruption is the greatest menace we are facing in the country.

    “Corruption is responsible for the recession we are witnessing today. So all Nigerians must join in the fight against graft.”

     

     

     

  • Police deploy sniffer dogs to Lagos, Abuja airports

    Police deploy sniffer dogs to Lagos, Abuja airports

    The police on Wednesday said it will deploy dogs to Murtala Muhammed International Airport and Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport to check drug smuggling into the country.

    The police also said sniffer dogs will be deployed to motor parks in Borno State, mosques and checkpoints to curb the use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) by suicide bombers.

    The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris, disclosed these during the flag off of the K9 dog trailers deployment.

    He said: “Now that we are facing security challenges, we have to deploy more of these dogs to Abuja and Lagos airports to address the problem of drug smuggling.

    “Also, they would be deployed to Muna garage in Borno State and checkpoints. The dogs will help us to identify destructive substances and also help in crowd control and other things.

    The Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) in charge of Force Animal Branch, Charles Ugomuoh, said the newly acquired K9 dog trailers would be used to prevent crime and boost the nation’s security.

    The AIG explained said the acquisition of the K9 trailers is part of IGP’S effort to use modern technologies in crime fighting.

     

     

  • Policeman sues IGP, others over unpaid wages

    The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris and two others have been sued by a retired policeman, Uduak Sunday Akpan, for allegedly withholding his salaries and other entitlements.

    The suit marked: NICN/ABJ/242/2016, filed for Uduak by his lawyer, John Ainetor, before the National Industrial Court (NIC), Abuja, also listed the Police Service Commission (PSC) and the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) as defendants.

    Uduak, who retired as a Superintendent of Police (SP) on January 2, 2015, said he was being owed 13-year salaries and allowances when he was suspended from service.

    The claimant said he joined the NPF on January 7, 1980, but was suspended on July 2, 1997, while the payment of his salaries and emoluments was also withheld until he was reinstated in 2010.

    Uduak stated that his salaries, allowances and emoluments were not paid to him for the period of his suspension.

    He is therefore praying the court to direct the defendants to pay him N5, 505,318.00 being the total amount of his unpaid salaries, allowances and emoluments from July 2, 1997 to December 31, 2009.

    The claimant is also seeking an order directing the defendants to pay him N10m as damages for the delay and refusal to pay his salaries, allowances and emoluments from July 2, 1997 to December 31, 2009.