- Say criminals attacking Nigerians with weapons from politicians
BY TIMOTHY AGBOR, OSOGBO
The Nigeria Police Force has said it will perform up to the expectations of the citizenry if sufficient operational vehicles, sophisticated weapons and other resources are provided for it to combat crimes and criminalities.
The Force, however, disclosed that some Nigerian politicians gave out guns and other dangerous weapons to thugs before and during the last elections in the country and that these weapons, which had yet to be recovered, were being used by the hoodlums to cause havoc.
It also accused many Nigerians of thwarting efforts aimed at apprehending criminals by shielding them and refusing to give useful information to the Police on the easiest ways to arrest them.
The revelations were made in Osogbo by the Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Police, Osun State Command, Yemisi Opalola, while reacting to the worsening clashes and killings in Ilesa by suspected cultists.
Recall that in pockets of renewed rival cult clashes in the ancient town, no fewer than five persons had beenkilled in the last one week as residents have been thrown into panic.
However, the police spokesperson blamed residents whom she claimed failed to reveal the whereabouts and identities of the miscreants to the Police, noting that dearth of functional operational vehicles was also hampering their efforts at tackling rising crime rates in the state.
“We are not happy with the situation of things in Ilesa. But, we are trying our best and people have been giving us kudos and we won’t stop doing that. But, what I want people to know is that the reason it (cult clash) is not coming down again is because all the weapons that have been handed over to them (criminals) during the elections have not been retrieved and that is why we are looking at the way to mop-up all firearms.
“We agree that these cultists are being used by the politicians, nobody will shy away from that. We know that and everybody knows,” the PPRO stressed.
While disclosing that the Police have arrested some of the notorious cultists in the state, Opalola further claimed that criminals were being emboldened because some citizens were protecting them against arrest.
“Police are not spirits, we cannot be everywhere at the same time. These people that you call cultists are sisters to some people, they are brothers to some people, they are fathers to some people, they are mothers to some people, they are uncles, nephews and cousins to people. These cultists are living in some places and they are living with some people. Why can’t they give us information about them?
“About two years ago, we declared some of them wanted. We looked for where they said they were living, we were not able to get them; we went round, we were not able to get them and I know they are hibernating somewhere with some people who don’t know that they are going to be the next victims of these cultists. They have been covering them instead of giving us the correct information. Sometimes, they give us some fake information.
“The Police will be going to one side to look for somebody whereas they know that the person is at another side. They will not give us the information and we will do all our best, we will be running up and down, chasing shadow instead of substance, while the people hide the person (suspect) in a place. We are not spirits; we can only work where you give us support. Security is not about the Police alone; we are all stakeholders and all the members of the community are supposed to work with us; they are supposed to help us to help them.
“These people go to shops and eat and people identify them, they know them and nobody can give us the information,” Opalola complained.
Allaying the fears of those who might want to provide the Police with useful information on criminal activities in their environments, the Police spokesperson said, “When you say you are afraid to tell us about the evil some people are doing, it is going to bounce back on you. People always say that if they tell Police about criminals, their identity may be revealed and I do tell them to tell me and that there are others like the Area Commander or the CP himself that people can call and give information to and their identity will be protected.”
“We don’t take intelligence in the air. Is it by revelation or in the dream that we are going to gather intelligence? Everyone should work in synergy with us. Enough of hating the Police; there is no way you can hate Police and expect maximum security. We have come to be together for life and nothing can separate us. Because of some perceptions of some people about the Police, they don’t want to offer information to us. There are lots of good the Police are doing out there that can help you. If you tell us, we will be able to help you,” she assured.
On the dearth of functional vehicles, Opalola said, “It is not far from the truth. It is what everyone sees. There is no way we can hide from that. If you want to do your work and you don’t have equipment to work with, how do you do it? Can the Police use their legs to run after those using good vehicles? Thanks to the Governor (Ademola Adeleke), he has promised to get good operational vehicles for us. When it happens, you will see how the work will improve. However, the Police in this Command are working with the resources at our disposal but if we get enough resources, we will perform wonders.
“I always call on well meaning Nigerians to help us. Some have refurbished our faulty vehicles and we are calling on more people to help us raise our faulty vehicles. Let us assume they give you N20,000 and you have the need of N50,000, will that be enough? I am not saying that the government is not giving us. Our IGP is trying to talk to the government to give us more and I know that it will be done.”
