The Nigeria Police Force has said that it won’t tolerate any form of blood-shedding as the state commences its local government election today.
The reaction of the police is in response to the tension brewing in the state regarding allegations by the state government that the Inspector General of Police, IGP, Kayode Egbetokun was working with his opponents.
On Tuesday, operatives of the Nigeria Police were seen at the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RIEC).
This was against the backdrop of a Federal High Court order barring the Nigeria Police Force from participating in the Rivers State elections.
The State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara questioned the presence of the police at the RSIEC.
He said that he prevented an alleged attempt by the operatives to remove materials for the upcoming local government elections.
However, the police in a statement on Friday night, signed by its spokesperson, Muyiwa Adejobi expressed its displeasure over the outburst by the governor.
The statement reads, “The Nigeria Police takes exception to the unwarranted outburst of the Governor and particularly the weighty accusations which he falsely levied against the Inspector-General of Police and the entire Nigeria Police Force and advise caution and decency in the pursuit of individual political goals.
“Threatening to shed blood and to burn down the State because of a Local Government election is not acceptable to us.
“The Nigeria Police Force is committed to the protection of lives and properties and will work with other security agencies in Rivers State to ensure that there is no breakdown of law and order in the State.
“To this end, the Inspector-General of Police has ordered increased deployment into Rivers State to beef up security throughout the state. Citizens of Rivers State are advised to go about their lawful businesses.”
The police further clarified that officers sighted at the RIEC were there to protect the precinct from an overnight attack.
The statement quoted IGP Egbetokun as saying that he had instructed the Commissioner of Police in the state to strictly adhere to the court order by refraining from any direct involvement in the election process.
“However, on the evening of 3rd October 2024, The commissioner of police in Rivers State received reports that policemen from Rivers State Government house had been deployed to the office of Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RIEC) to aid the conduct of the election.
“This report was also relayed to the Inspector-General of Police who gave clearance to the Commissioner of Police to withdraw the policemen from the Government House and replace them with policemen from the Command Operations department.
“The mandate of the men from the Operations Department was to provide overnight security for the RIEC to prevent any attack on the facility,” the IGP said.
The statement noted that before the development, there had been a series of security breaches in the state following the spate of court orders and counter orders and reactions to them (police) by supporters of the different political parties involved.
The police added, “The response of the Command to secure RIEC overnight was therefore professional and supported by the Inspector-General of Police.
“For emphasis sake, the policemen deployed to RIEC from the operations department of Rivers State Command on the night of 3rd October 2024 were with the sole mandate to protect the RIEC office from attack overnight.
“This action was proactive and responsive to intelligence at the disposal of the State Command.”
The statement further expressed the shock of the IGP to see the state governor storming the RIEC office at night.
The IGP said the governor had wrongly accused the police of lawful duties, deriding the Police institution and using unprintable words to describe him.