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Tag: IG

  • IG warns SARS operatives against unprofessional conduct

    IG warns SARS operatives against unprofessional conduct

    The Inspector-General of Police (I-G), Mr Ibrahim Idris, has warned personnel of the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) against unprofessional conduct.

    Idris, at a meeting with SARS commanders in Abuja yesterday, told the operatives to correct the erroneous impression about the unit.

    “You have to correct this impression .This is a new beginning to give the nation a new anti-robbery squad.

    “You don’t have the right to take life of anybody or change civil offence to criminal offence.

    “Please don’t fail us. This management has the hope in you, I don’t want you (SARS) to fail us,“he said.

    He said that the new SARS should be an advocate of the new Change Mantra of the present administration.

    Idris said that the human rights groups would be involved in the training of SARS operatives, adding that an intelligent unit would be created for the unit.

    “We are going to retrain you even as you work in your different zones.

    “You should have the courage to tackle what is against human nature,“he said.

    He said that every SARS unit would be under the command structure of the police commissioners in the states, except the FCT.

    Idris also warned them against mounting road blocks as it remained banned.

    “They will be redeployed periodically when there is security reports,“he said.

    The Commissioner of Police in charge of Federal SARS, Mr Dibal Yakadi, assured of the readiness of his men to operate within the confines of the  laws.

  • How Buhari picked IG, Immigration CG

    How Buhari picked IG, Immigration CG

    Acting Inspector-General of Police Idris Ibrahim emerged from the shortlisted 13 candidates screened by the Department of State Service (DSS), it was learnt yesterday.

    The DSS security report, which was sent to the Police Council by the Police Service Commission(PSS).

    President Muhammadu Buhari was said to have picked Ibrahim after what was called “a painstaking consideration of the security report”.

    It was also learnt that Buhari insisted on merit instead of geopolitical considerations in the choice of the Comptrollers-General of the Nigerian Immigration Service( NIS) and Nigerian Prison Service( NPS)

    A top Presidency source made these known in confidence amid the controversy generated by the appointment of the acting IGP and the two others.

    The President was accused of ethnic bias by conceding the three slots to the North.

    The source said: “President Muhammadu Buhari is a system person. As for the appointment of the acting  IGP, 13 police officers were shortlisted. The 13 nominees cut across every part of the country.

    “The choice of the IGP was a complex thing, it is a constitutional matter and anybody could challenge a decision on it. It is solely the responsibility of the Police Service Commission and the Police Council, which is headed by President Buhari.

    “We said for the police, we won’t go beyond  the DSS report. The recommendations for the appointment  of IGP came from the Police Service Commission and the Police Council.

    “All we needed to do  was to forward the DSS report to the President since the President is the chairman of the Police Council. That raw report on the 13 candidates was what was sent to the President.”

    On the appointment of the CG of NIS, Mohammed Babadende and Ahmed Jafar, the President opted for merit instead of geopolitical balancing.

    The source added: “Concerning the Immigration Service and Prison Service, we said we have to move away from the past. So, the government set up a panel of about seven people. We gave them terms of reference  and we said they should invite the nominees . They had security report , we said they should conduct some kind of assessment on each of them which they did.

    “As for the Immigration Service, the person who is there now ( Babadende) from Jigawa State  came first in the assessment. For the Prison Service, Ahmed Jafar from Kebbi State also came first but those who came second and third were from the Southwest.

    “Some government officials  looked at the implications of having the CGs of Immigration and Prison from the Northwest. They made a case for the choice of the second place candidate from the Southwest as the CG of Prison Service.

    “But there was merit problem in the choice of the CG of Prison. The gap between the first and second candidates who vied for the CG of Prison Service was 50. Although the second candidate from the Southwest was recommended as the CG purely on ethnic basis, the President decided to go for merit.”

  • Reps urge IG to probe Abuja preacher’s murder

    Reps urge IG to probe Abuja preacher’s murder

    •Adeboye: she’s gone to glory

    The House of Representatives yesterday directed Inspector General of Police Ibrahim Idris to ensure a thorough investigation of the killing of a preacher, Mrs. Eunice Elisha Olawale.

    She was murdered around Gbazango-West area of Kubwa in the Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) while evangelising last Saturday morning.

    The lawmakers also urged the IGP to ensure that perpetrators of the heinous crime are brought to book.

    The police on Sunday  announced the arrest of six suspects.

    The resolution of the House followed a motion of urgent national importance by a member, Hon. Babatunde Gabriel Kolawole (APC Ondo).

    Moving the motion with the title: “Gruesome murder of Mrs. Eunice Olawale in Kubwa, Abuja and the need to protect other citizens in the FCT,”  the lawmaker said the woman and the wife of  a pastor of Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) Pastor Olawale Elisha,  was hacked to death in  the early hours of Saturday, while preaching the gospel a few meters from her house in Kubwa, by unidentified miscreants.

    “The late Mrs. Eunice Olawale is from Ilawe  (Ekiti  State)  while her husband  Pastor Elisha Olawale is from Ikare-Akoko in Ondo state, and that she was allegedly murdered by miscreants who were said to be annoyed by her early morning preaching in the area.

    ‘This incident has  caused ethnic tension in the Federal Capital Territory because some are claiming she was killed by extremists while others say they are miscreants, and there is therefore the need for the House  to be proactive to prevent the breakdown of law and order and  further loss of. lives.”

    When Speaker Yakubu Dogara called for a vote on the motion, it was overwhelmingly supported by members.

    The lawmakers thereafter observed a minute-silence for the late Mrs. Olawale.

    Also yesterday, the General Overseer of the RCCG Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye visited the family of the late Assistant Pastor of the Divine Touch Parish of the church in Abuja.

    Adeboye visited the husband of the deceased, Pastor Olawale Elisha and the family around 6 a.m. to condole with them.

    He was received by Pastor Olawale, his children and other church members.

    In the condolence register, Adeboye wrote, “ E. A Adeboye; Glory to God for a divine warrior gone to glory”.

    Wife of the vice president, Mrs Dolapo Osinbajo, also a pastor of the RCCG, on Sunday visited the family.

    In a statement yesterday, the RCCG, said the church is “appalled and in grief on the sad incident of the gruesome murder of our sister, daughter and minister, Mojisola Elisha Olawale, in the early hours of Saturday the 9th of July 2016 while making early morning call to salvation.

    ”We are indeed mournful in RCCG. As sweet as heaven is, death of our youths is not what we wish for.

    ”The RCCG shall not cease to pray that God will end bloodshed in Nigeria and all over the world. The church sympathizes with the widower, and prays The Lord will restore joy to the Olawale family and intervene speedily to make the innocent safe”

    In its statement, the national leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria, (CAN) described the killing of Christians across some states especially the recent one in Abuja as brutal and unacceptable.

    CAN said: “Authority’s inaction is becoming unbearable and may not be tolerated anymore.”

    It called on Christians all over to always be ready to defend themselves against further attacks.

    CAN advised authorities both at the states and federal level to do everything possible to bring the perpetrators to justice before the crisis gets out of control.

    The statement by CAN General Secretary Rev. Musa Asake added: “Mrs. Eunice Elisha was murdered in Kubwa area of Abuja, FCT, in the early hours of the day. Her neck was slashed and she was also stabbed in the stomach. About a month ago in Kano, Mrs. Bridget  Agbaheme, a 74 year old Christian was murdered at  Wambai market  due to an altercation with a Muslim man who came to the front of her shop to perform ablution. Her offence was that she objected to the Islamic washing rite in front of her shop.

    “Just last week a clergyman of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) Reverend Zakariya was killed by attackers suspected to be Fulani Herdsmen in Obi LGA of Nasarawa State.

    “Before the situation escalates into an unmanageable national crisis, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) is calling on the authorities both at the states and federal to do everything possible to bring the perpetrators to justice if the confidence of Christians on this government must be maintained.”

     

  • IG orders mop-up of illegal firearms

    IG orders mop-up of illegal firearms

    The Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Solomon Arase has directed Commissioners of Police (CPs) to mop-up illegal firearms in their areas of jurisdiction.

    Arase said the order became imperative following the increasing rate of proliferation and engagement of prohibited firearms, adding that the directive is aimed at ensuring adequate protection of lives and property.

    This was contained in a statement by the Force spokesperson, Olabisi Kolawole.

    The statement listed some of the prohibited firearms under the Firearms Act to include: “Artillery, apparatus for the discharge of any explosives or gas-diffusing projectile, revolvers and pistols, machine guns and pistols, rocket weapons and military rifles, including those with calibre 7.62mm, 9mm, .300 inches and .303inches.”

    The force also said its intelligence and operational assets will be deployed to  arrest and prosecute anyone who fails to surrender his/her arms or renew requisite licenses for non-prohibited firearms.

    The statement reads: “Such modalities will include a reward system for informants whose information shall lead to the location and recovery of such weapons and arrest of the culprits.”

    Arase urged those in possession of non-prohibited firearms to renew their licenses before July.

     

  • IG sends homicide investigators to probe Rivers killings

    IG sends homicide investigators to probe Rivers killings

    crack murder investigators have been dispatched to Rivers state to probe the killings in the crisis-ridden state.

    Inspector- General of Police Solomon Arase stated this yesterday in Port Harcourt, the state capital.

    Arase also launched the new uniform for Supernumerary Police (Spy Police), officers, an event organised by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC).

    He said the team of investigators from the Force headquarters, Abuja will take over investigation into the killings to ensure that the culprits irrespective of who are involved, are punished according to the law.

    The security boss condemned the spate of killings in the state and in the country generally.

    He assured residents and citizens of the security agencies’ determination to ensure that hoodlums, (cultists, robbers, kidnappers) among others, do not take over the state.

    “It is unacceptable that people should take laws into their hands. This is not a Hobbesian state where might is right and I have told the Commissioner of Police that we must go after whoever takes the life of anybody and ensure the person is treated according to the law.

    “Again, proliferation of firearms in the system is not acceptable not only in Rivers state but across the length and breadth country. This is also a reflective of the international environment. It is a global thing but we will make sure that we did not allow a group of criminals to overwhelm the state. I assure the people of this country that we are going to clamp down on them and bring them to book.

    “Those accused of masterminding the killings in this state and those on the police invitation lists are being investigated. I have dispatched a team of homicide investigators from Abuja to come and take over the investigation in the state. As you know, when things like these happen, there is usually a different perspective to it.

    “I have always taken a stand that the Police are supposed to be apolitical and if we are going to be apolitical, we must be professional in our approach in investigating these matters. That is why I have deployed the team to take over most of these cases and ensure they are professionally investigated.

    In the latest case, no fewer than 12 persons including a family of four were reported killed by suspected cultists in Ula-Upata and Edoha Communities of Ahoada East Local Government Area of the state last weekend. The Police confirmed the death of four persons.

    Bodies of some of the victims were reportedly not found, but their heads were said to have been seen floating on a nearby river.

    Commissioner of Police Musa Kimo assured that the criminals would be tracked down soon, promising that normalcy had returned to the communities since security was beefed up.

    Kimo appealed for release of timely information to the police and urged community dwellers to organise community policing vigilante groups to secure their environment.

  • IG orders arrest of black market petrol sellers

    IG orders arrest of black market petrol sellers

    Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Solomon Arase has directed Zonal Assistant Inspectors-General of Police (AIG), FCT’s and other state commands’ Commissi-oners of Police (CP) to arrest anybody found selling petroleum products in plastic containers.

    The Police High Command explained that the order became imperative following untold suffering and hazard emanating from the activities of black marketers.

    The IGP noted that the act has led to fire outbreaks, thereby rendering many people homeless.

    He spoke through Force spokesperson, Olabisi Kolawole, in a statement in Abuja yesterday.

    The statement said: “Apart from the hardship this act is causing to fuel buyers, it has also rendered some innocent and law-abiding citizens homeless due to fire outbreak from jerry-can petrol storage.”

    Arase, while warning fuel attendants at filling stations to desist from selling petrol inside jerry-can and plastic containers, added that the buyers and the sellers of the products, if caught, would be arrested and prosecuted.

    He noted that fuel products such as petrol are highly flammable and if not stored and handled properly, “can seriously endanger people, property and the environment”.

    The IGP, who assured Nigerians of Police readiness to fulfill their constitutional mandate, solicited for a cordial relationship between the Force and the citizens.

     

  • IG issues order for Tompolo’s arrest 

    IG issues order for Tompolo’s arrest 

    •Security beefed up in Benue over Mark’s alarm

    Inspector-General of Police Solomon Arase said yesterday that his men have the order to arrest ex-Niger Delta militant Government Ekpemupolo (aka Tompolo), declared wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) after a court issued the warrant for his arrest.

    Tomopolo was declared wanted by the EFCC in connection with a N45.9b fraud in the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).

    The IGP also said he had directed Benue State Commissioner of Police to increase security in the state following the alarm raised by former Senate President David Mark.

    The IGP spoke in Abuja during a session with journalists.

    Arase said:  “We are still looking for Tompolo. The commissioners of police in Delta, Rivers and all those areas have been given the warrant for the arrest so that they could carry out the arrest.

    “The EFCC has declared him wanted and you know the court has issued a warrant of arrest. So, it is the duty of the EFCC to publish him as a wanted person and it is our duty to ensure the arrest.

    On David Mark’s allegation that his life is under threat,  Arase said: “I read it in the newspapers but I have not seen the petition but I have asked the Commissioner of Police to ensure that there is no breakdown of law and order as the election comes up on Saturday.”

    The IG also said the Police have incurred over N800million as judgment debt.

    He said: “As at the last count, we had a total of about N800million or close to N1billion in garnishee.

    “We are trying to appeal against some of these judgments. We are also raising the argument that before you make the garnishee to be absolute, you must get the Attorney-General of the Federation’s fiat.

    On the proposed recruitment of 10,000 men as directed by President Muhammadu Buhari, the IG said: “We want the recruitment to be state based because we want to encourage community partnership. If we want to encourage community partnership for instance, somebody from Kano who understands the language and culture, as a Constable, he will be able to serve better and gather information in that area after training instead of talking somebody from Lagos who does not understand the culture to go and dump him in Kano and then take a young boy who has not passed through Kaduna before to be dumped in the Southeast.”

  • Violent herdsmen not Nigerians, says IG

    The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr. Solomon Arase at the weekend said most troublesome herdsmen are not Nigerians but foreigners who illegally enter the country with their cattle due to the porous borders.

    Arase stated this while reacting to a question raised by a farmer on “persistent attacks of herdsmen” at interactive section with stakeholders on community policing partnership held in Akure, the state capital.

    He noted that most of these violent herdsmen are either from Mali or Chad, adding Nigerian herdsmen are law abiding.

    He urged the farmers to be careful and take caution in dealing with them.

    The IGP said the police and state governments are now working on how to build ranches for the herdsmen, adding that he had earlier discussed this with Governor Olusegun Mimiko.

    His words: “I have taken suggestions about how we can develop big ranches so that they can stop grazing on farmlands.

    “We should also know about the history of migration. Most of these herdsmen are not Nigerians. They are people from Mali, Chad, who came into our system. So that is why we have to be very careful. Our borders are very porous. Predominantly our own herdsmen are law abiding people.

    “But when people come from outside with their cattle, we should not deny them entry because of ECOWAS protocols, good neighborliness but at the same time we should not allow them to embark on criminal activities.”

    However, before the programme began, some farmers from Ayede-Ogbese in Akure North Local Government Area lamented the persistent attacks of herdsmen on their farmlands.

    A farmer, Sunday Owoseni, said they thought the condemnation of the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Chief Olu Falae’s abduction by various stakeholders would reduce the attacks on their farmland but reverse was the case.

    Also, a female farmer from Ebonyi State, Mrs Ngozi Ogbonna, lamented that she took a N1.5 million loan from a microfinance bank to cultivate cassava and rice but only for Fulani herdsmen to destroy it and all efforts to get them arrested had been frustrated by the police.

    Mrs. Ogbonna, a widow with eight children, said she would contemplate suicide, if President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Mimiko fail to find lasting solution to incessant herdsmen attack on local farmers.

  • Minister to IG: unmask vandals of public facilities

    The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Administration has appealed to the police high command to step up surveillance on the increasing activities of vandals in the Federal Capital City and arrest those involved.

    FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Bello made the appeal while receiving the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Solomon Arase who paid him a working visit in his office at Area 11, Garki I District, Abuja.

    The Minister specifically requested the police to apprehend those removing such vital equipments as electrical and telecommunication cables, manhole covers as well as railway tracks that are still under construction.

    According to a statement issued by Deputy Director/Chief Press Secretary, Muhammad Sule, the minister warned that security agents have to frontally tackle all those engaged in these nefarious activities, which has the potentials of graduating into big time criminals if they are not adequately checked.

    His words: “What is more disturbing now is that even the urban railway system that is under construction, vandals have started vandalizing the tracks by removing vital equipments. Of course, the issue of the manhole covers is well known. Each manhole is probably about four meters deep and when you leave it open, it’s very dangerous”.

    According to him, “even though these might not appear to be very serious crimes compared to armed robbery and kidnapping, they are still crimes because those that do these minor criminal activities eventually graduate to become big time criminals”.

    He charged the Inspector-General to also unmask those patronizing these vandals to put an end to the illicit trade; stressing, “we need to identify who those vandals are and the markets where they take these items for sale”.

    “We need to make examples with some people; or else, government will continue to invest a lot of resources on key infrastructure and people will just vandalize and sale them for a fraction of the cost,” the Minister added.

    Malam Bello used the occasion appreciate the existing cordial relationship that exists between the FCTA and the Nigeria Police which he noted has made his job and the security of Abuja a lot easier.

    The Minister pledged that the FCT Administration would continue to support the security agencies to do their job of making Abuja a very secure city.

    The Minister however frowned at the scenario where some Abuja motorists flout basic traffic rules; describing it is disheartening to see that up till now, some road users in Abuja still do not like to obey traffic signs.

    Earlier in his remark, the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Solomon Arase appreciated the logistic support of the FCTA and called for more assistance in terms vehicles to the FCT Police Command to boost their surveillance activities.

    The Police boss revealed that he has deployed horses to strategic areas like the Federal Secretariat to beef up security activities; remarking that the Police Force would do everything possible within its powers to keep Abuja safe.

    Mr. Arase further solicited the support of the FCT Administration to provide FCT a befitting Police Headquarters that will give the ambience the Federal Capital Territory truly deserves.

    The FCT Permanent Secretary, Dr. Babatope Ajakaiye and some other senior officials of the FCT Administration joined the Minister to receive the Inspector-General Police.

     

  • Firm’s boss urges IG to probe ‘detention’

    Firm’s boss urges IG to probe ‘detention’

    A company’s chief executive, Mr. Greg Odutayo, has urged the Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase, to investigate his alleged detention by policemen at the Zone 2 headquarters in Lagos.

    Odutayo, the chief executive officer of Royal Roots Communication Network Ltd, said his alleged arrest and detention followed a petition by Ms Aisha Tosan, the presenter of a defunct security programme on television, who accused him of converting a 350KVA generator belonging to Dobys Haven Estate, where they lived, to his personal use, paying a pittance to the estate’s account.

    Describing the allegation as laughable, Odutayo said: “Two policemen from Zone 2, Onikan, Lagos, came to my office to arrest me, claiming to be acting on orders from above. When I got to their station, the Public Relations Officer, CSP Adebowale Lawal, said the arrest was a response to a petition by a fellow resident, Chief Aisha Tosan that I stole a 350KVA generator belonging to our estate. I found the story befuddling because I bought the generator last year when the estate decided to sell it. The petitioner, Chief Tosan, presided over the meeting where it was agreed that the generator should be sold to me for N2,000, 000. She was the resident association chairman of the estate then, while I was the secretary.”

    The resident association absolved Odutayo of the allegations against him in a letter to the AIG.

    The letter, signed by the President and Secretary, Lakin Soleye and Ayo Awe Joseph, reads: “Let us reiterate that it was the decision of the estate association to sell the estate generator to any ready and willing buyer, including members. May we also state that two quotations were received for the sale of the generator from residents. The quotations were: N1.7 million by another resident and N2 million by the final buyer.”

    The police denied deliberately detaining Mr. Odutayo.

    Lawal said: “There was no deliberate attempt to detain Mr. Odutayo for 24 hours. When a case of stealing is brought to us, we have to do our investigation. Incidentally, our investigation stretched into the night, making it impossible for us to release him. But we granted him bail the following day. I preach against infringement on human rights and will not go against what I preach.” company’s chief executive, Mr. Greg Odutayo, has urged the Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase, to investigate his alleged detention by policemen at the Zone 2 headquarters in Lagos.

    Odutayo, the chief executive officer of Royal Roots Communication Network Ltd, said his alleged arrest and detention followed a petition by Ms Aisha Tosan, the presenter of a defunct security programme on television, who accused him of converting a 350KVA generator belonging to Dobys Haven Estate, where they lived, to his personal use, paying a pittance to the estate’s account.

    Describing the allegation as laughable, Odutayo said: “Two policemen from Zone 2, Onikan, Lagos, came to my office to arrest me, claiming to be acting on orders from above. When I got to their station, the Public Relations Officer, CSP Adebowale Lawal, said the arrest was a response to a petition by a fellow resident, Chief Aisha Tosan that I stole a 350KVA generator belonging to our estate. I found the story befuddling because I bought the generator last year when the estate decided to sell it. The petitioner, Chief Tosan, presided over the meeting where it was agreed that the generator should be sold to me for N2,000, 000. She was the resident association chairman of the estate then, while I was the secretary.”

    The resident association absolved Odutayo of the allegations against him in a letter to the AIG.

    The letter, signed by the President and Secretary, Lakin Soleye and Ayo Awe Joseph, reads: “Let us reiterate that it was the decision of the estate association to sell the estate generator to any ready and willing buyer, including members. May we also state that two quotations were received for the sale of the generator from residents. The quotations were: N1.7 million by another resident and N2 million by the final buyer.”

    The police denied deliberately detaining Mr. Odutayo.

    Lawal said: “There was no deliberate attempt to detain Mr. Odutayo for 24 hours. When a case of stealing is brought to us, we have to do our investigation. Incidentally, our investigation stretched into the night, making it impossible for us to release him. But we granted him bail the following day. I preach against infringement on human rights and will not go against what I preach.”