Police Celebrate Month-long Zero Crime in Anambra, Attribute Feat to Soludo’s Support
•CP thanks criminals, IPOB for peace they have given the state
David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka
The Commissioner of Police in Anambra State, CP Ikioye Orutugu, has celebrated one month of zero crime in the state, attributing it to the support of the state governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, and other sister security agencies.
The commissioner told journalists on courtesy call to his office that for one full month since after he took over as commissioner, not even one bullet has been fired on criminals by police operatives, just as not even a bullet has been fired at police operatives by criminals.
He said: “The peace we have today is not by my might, but the grace of God, support of the governor of Anambra State, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, and my sister agencies like the army, Civil Defence, DSS and all others.
“I’m proud to say that since I arrived this state one month ago, not even a bullet has been shot at the police and none has been shot at criminals by the police. So, I want to thank even the criminals for all the peace they have given us.
“Any how you want to look at it, we have to even thank the IPOB people because they have remained on their lane since I came here, so we must thank them. I don’t want to see them as criminals.
“As long as they remain on their lane, I have no problem with them. But I want to say that I will revenge any touch on any police officer in this command as far as I’m here. They should remain the way they are and let us remain as we are, so that we can all move on the part of development.”
Speaking on the gradually disappearing sit-at-home exercise in Anambra, the commissioner said he has been visiting markets on Mondays to urge the people to shun such orders and come out to eke a living for themselves.
He said the command promises to provide security, and has also been enlisting the services of town criers to urge the people to come out on Mondays.
He further said such method of self-punishment should not be entertained as a form of protest by Anambra people who are widely acknowledged to be very industrious.
“How will you have development when you harass and kidnap construction workers who are coming to bring development in your community? Look at the sit at home thing.
“Anambra which is the pride of Nigeria in business, through which the people have become so rich, even with no known mineral resources like other states, but someone is coming to tell them to shun their business for protest.
“Anambra people must know that if they obey sit at home, they are invoking poverty on themselves. That is why government, in collaboration with the police are doing all that we can to ensure the safety of the people.
“Why can you tell the people to stay at home because of your political stand? There are better ways to go about agitations, not suffering your own people.
“If you kill 10 police officers here, majority of them are either from the South East or even from Anambra, so you are killing your own people. If they burn police station, I doubt if the federal government will wake up and leave every project it has, to allocate money for the reconstruction of burnt police stations.
“So, it is still money that the state would have put into other things that they now spend to do these things. There should think up more better ways and maybe one day, their demands may come to pass.
“But if you think you will make such demands through killing of security officers, then it may not work. That is why we are continually pleading with the youths to continue to keep the peace, and if they don’t, then we will engage them.”
