09042021- Insecurity: Tension mounts in Imo, Abia, Rivers

26 —Vanguard, FRIDAY, APRIL 9, 2021
Continues from Page 5
justice was allowed to reign
and poverty stamped out,
the workload on the military
and the Police would yield
little or no results.
His words: “The security
situation in Imo State, the
security situation in Nigeria
as a whole, the security
situation in all nooks and
crannies of our society is not
palatable. We are passing
through a very difficult
moment in the history of our
nation.
“The recent attack on the
Police headquarters and the
Correctional Centre in Imo
State, the unending
herdsmen crises, the
banditry, the unending
Boko Haram, and
kidnapping are all products
of poverty and injustice and
I think time has come for
us, political leaders, to tell
ourselves the truth and
address this ugly situation
and help our men and
women of the armed forces
and the police who are
currently fighting the
symptoms and not the
disease of poverty and
injustice.
“What I will ask Imo State
government to do is: the
location of the prison and
the Police headquarters is
wrong. I had built the best
prison or Correctional
centre command, I built the
best police command in the
Federal Republic of
Nigeria but they left them
to waste; they are not being
used.
“If people were there,
these people wouldn’t have
had that kind of access. It
has a large expanse of land,
staff quarters, the capacity
for inmates there is 3,200 as
against where they are
now, which has about 1,200
and they squeeze 10
inmates in a place.
“My message to him is
that he should face the
challenge of leadership
and consultation at this
time. It is very important
because if the governor
consulted me and said how
did you handle IPOB
during your time that there
was peace in Imo State,
how did you handle the
issue of kidnapping, how
did you handle the issue of
agitators? I would have told
him.
“During my time, we
collected more than 100 AK-
47 rifles from the youths
who came for exchange
willingly, just by talking to
them. We must always
Naira appreciates to
N409.65/$ in I&E window
By Elizabeth Adegbesan
The naira yesterday appreciated to N409.65 kobo
per dollar in the Investors and Exporters (I&E)
window.
Data from FMDQ showed that the indicative
exchange rate for the naira dropped by N1.35 kobo
to N409.65 kobo per dollar from N411 per dollar
on Wednesday, translating to 50 kobo appreciation
for the naira.
The volume of dollars (turnover) traded in the
window yesterday rose by 691 percent to $93.69
million from $11.85 million on Wednesday.
vanguardnews @vanguardnews @vanguardnews
Insecurity: Tension mounts in Imo, Abia, Rivers
understand that these
children are our children.
“We are overloading the
military and the police in
trying to help the situation
when we have not tackled
the issues of injustices in
this country and the issues
of poverty.
“As long as these continue
in the form and shape it is
going on, and as long as
young men wake up in the
morning and there is no job
and poverty is ravaging the
system, there is little or
nothing the armed forces
can do because it is a
growing thing. The young
men are coming out of
schools, they are not getting
jobs, we must address that.”
‘DSS alerted
Police,
Uzodimma, one
week before Imo
attacks’
Meantime, Dennis
Amachree, former assistant
director of the Department
of State Services, DSS, said
yesterday that the agency
informed the police and
Governor Uzodinma of an
impending attack on the
police command and prison
facility a week before the
incident.
On Monday, gunmen
attacked the federal prison
and police command
headquarters in Owerri
and freed 1,844 inmates.
Again on Tuesday,
gunmen attacked another
police station located in
Ehime Mbano LGA in the
state.
Speaking when he
featured on Sunrise Daily,
a Channels Television
programme, Amachree said
there was “enough
actionable intelligence”
gathered by the DSS before
Monday’s attacks but the
police and the governor did
not execute it.
“You know in our
lackadaisical way, when
intelligence come they
throw it by the side and then
when something happens,
everybody runs around.”
Amachree said the police
are the “actioning party”
that should have taken
steps on the security
intelligence, adding that
Mohammed Adamu,
former Inspector-General of
Police, did not get his facts
right before alleging that
the masterminds of the
attacks were members of
the proscribed Indigenous
People of Biafra, IPOB.
Amachree not
speaking for DSS
– Imo govt
Countering the former
DSS chief, Imo State
Government said
Amacheree was not
speaking for the DSS.
In a statement, the
I n f o r m a t y i o n
Commissioner, Declan
Emelumba, said any official
statement from DSS, should
come from the current
director of DSS and not from
an individual speaking for
himself.
“The ex-director of DSS
is certainly not in position
to speak for DSS, he is not
in service. If there is
anybody who can make
that statement it is the
current director of DSS. We
have not heard from DSS.”
Asked if there was any
such alert, he said: “As far
as we are concerned, there
is no such letter or alert.
The man is speaking for
himself and not DSS.”
Imo monarch,
chiefs kidnapped
after attending
traditional
wedding
There was palpable fear
in Imo State on Wednesday
night after gunmen
kidnapped the traditional
ruler of Umueze Nguru in
Aboh Mbaise Local
Government Area of the
state, Eze Charles Iroegbu.
The gunmen also
kidnapped the cabinet
chiefs of the kingdom who
accompanied the monarch
to a public function in the
state.
The respected monarch,
who is owner and chief
executive officer of All
States Mass Transit, and his
cabinet chiefs were
kidnapped after attending
a traditional wedding in
Mbano.
They were in three
vehicles and were heading
back to the kingdom when
the gun-wielding men
waylaid them and diverted
their movement, Vanguard
learned, yesterday.
The development has
caused panic in the
community.
“His Highness and his
cabinet chiefs were on their
way back from a traditional
wedding ceremony in
Mbano when they were
kidnapped. This is
unbelievable and there is
fear and panic
everywhere,” a community
source said and expressed
worry that the kidnappers
had not established
communication since they
struck.
Contacted, the police
spokesperson in the state,
Orlando Ikeokwu, said he
could not confirm the
abduction.
Tension in Aba
over shooting
around police
station
As the waves of insecurity
spread, there was tension
in Aba, the commercial
capital of Abia State,
following reported sporadic
shooting by police
personnel around Azikiwe
Road and Jubilee Road.
Policemen barricaded all
roads leading to the
Correctional Centre and
the Police Area Command
in the city.
Vanguard gathered that
there was heavy shooting
at the Aba Area Command
and another at Bata
junction.
Residents of the
adjoining roads to the two
facilities have been barred
from leaving their houses,
while shop owners were
forced to leave the area.
Barricades guarded by
the Police were observed at
Okwu na Uka street, Pound
and Hospital roads as well
as the area near the Aba
General Hospital.
A police source told
Vanguard that the
barricades were not
unusual, considering the
recent attacks on police
formations in the South-
East zone.
According to eyewitness
account, trouble started
around 8:am when a team
of armed police men
stormed the vicinity and
started shooting into the air.
It was not yet clear if there
were any human casualties.
An eyewitness, simply
identified as Longinus, a
tricycle operator, said he
parked his keke ( tricycle)
and was eating in a
restaurant when a team of
policemen stormed the area
and started shooting.
According to him, people
scampered for safety amid
the raging gunfire.
He said that on his return
to the scene after the
shooting, he discovered
that people’s vehicles,
including his keke, had
been destroyed by the
police for yet to be
explained reasons.
The tricycle operator
claimed that the invading
police team also took away
his keke to an unknown
destination.
His words: “We were here
and suddenly a team of
policemen came to this
place and started shooting.
People ran away for safety.
I was eating at a nearby
restaurant.
“Everybody ran for safety
as they threw teargas. We
thought it was over, until
they went and reinforced,
came back and started
destroying peoples
vehicles. My keke was
destroyed and they took it
to their station.”
He said the action of the
police was unprovoked as
residents around the area
had no knowledge of what
might have led to the act.
Another version had it
that police personnel went
on rampage, smashing
windscreens of vehicles
and destroying people’s
property claiming to be
searching for members of
the IPOB; and the
personnel of Eastern
Security Network, ESN.
The incident happened
shortly after a reported
sporadic shooting around
Aba Area Command.
Police were said to have
cordoned off all roads
leading to the scene and
subjected passersby to
thorough security checks.
Following the gunshots,
traders and people around
the vicinity scampered for
safety, while shops around
Hospital Road by CPS, and
Jubilee Road were shut
down in the ensuing
confusion.
Contacted, the Police
Public Relations Officer,
PPRO, Geoffrey Ogbonna,
said a team of policemen
went for arrest at Ama
Ogbonna, Aba when the
operatives came under
attack.
He said they later called
for reinforcement before the
situation was brought
under control.
incident.
“Meanwhile, necessary
measures have been taken
to protect the pupils and
staff of the school with
security sweeps ongoing,
while the school is
temporarily closed.
“Governor Okezie
Ikpeazu has directed
security agencies to embark
on proactive checks in
other vulnerable locations
out of abundance of caution.
“While we are grateful to
God that there is no harm
to life or property, we urge
citizens and residents to
continue to maintain
vigilance and report
suspicious situations to
security agents.”
Three feared
killed as cultists
clash in Port
Harcourt
In Rivers, three people
were feared dead at old Port
Harcourt township area of
Port Harcourt City Local
Government Area of Rivers
State as cultists clashed in
in a supremacy battle
over who controls the
area.
The development has
thrown residents of
Bende, Victoria and
Bagham streets into
palpable fear.
A source, who
witnessed the deadly
clash, said it started
around 8:00pm, adding
that one Dike, and Biggy
were among the people
feared killed.
The source said:
“Yesterday, around
8:00pm, we heard
gunshots. When we
came out later at Bagham
Junction, we saw one
person that was shot in
the chest, dead.
“I couldn’t identify him
because it was dark. I
also heard that one
person called Biggy, was
shot at Victoria Street and
a business man called Dike
was also shot. I don’t know
if the business man died.”
He lamented that cultists
terrorising the area move
uninterrupted with guns
in search of their targets,
and urged the security
operatives to be proactive
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in their duties.
The source said: “The
truth is that these cultists
come for their target.
Some times, we see them
pass with guns. Some
time it’s stray bullet that
pick some persons. Our
concern is that security
should be proactive.
They pay attention more
to other issues than
human lives.”
Confirming the
development, the Public
Relations Officer of the
State Police Command,
SP. Nnamdi Omoni, said
the number of casualties
could not be ascertained
at press time.
Omoni disclosed that
shooting was following a
cult war, adding that
police had restored calm
in the area.
“I can confirm that
there was cult clash
yesterday at the town
axis of Port Harcourt.
Two rival cult groups
engaged themselves in a
senseless war of
supremacy.
“On getting the distress
call, we mobilised and
we chased them and we
were able to recover one
of their pistols. The
manhunt for the cultists
continues.
“So far we have no case
of reported casualty. The
Commissioner of Police
has declared war against
the criminals.”
Gunmen kidnap
LG boss in
Rivers
In a related
development,
unidentified gunmen
abducted the chairman of
Okrika
Local
Government Area of
Rivers State, Mr.
Philemon Kingoli in the
early hours of
Wednesday along the
Peter Odili Road in Port
Harcourt City Local
Government Area of the
state.
This came a few weeks
after gunmen abducted
the traditional ruler of
Ikuru town, HRM King
Aaron Miller, in Andoni
Local Government Area
of the State as well as a
senior lecturer at the
Department of
Linguistics and
Communications
Studies, Dr. Jones
Ayouwo.
However, the duo have
regained freedom, with a
trending video from the
monarch’s kidnappers
calling on politicians
and royal fathers to
enthrone peace in
Andoni.
At press time, reason
for abduction of the LG
council chairman is yet to
be known as the gunmen
have not established
contact with relatives of
victim.
Meanwhile, the State
Police Public Relations
Officer, SP Nnamdi
Omoni, who confirmed
the kidnap of Kingoli,
said the command is
making efforts to secure
unconditional release of
the LG boss