Rivers No Longer Safe For Criminals –IGP

Following the commissioning of Police dial 24/7 equipment the Inspector-General of Police, Sir Mike Okiro says Rivers State is now a ‘no-go- area for criminals and kidnappers.

Sir Okiro who made the assertion on Wednesday while unveiling the device also said the state has become the first in the Niger Delta to donate the equipment to the police.

He said the current move by the government of Governor Chibuike Amaechi should send, “ a strong warning signal to criminals and other miscreants in the state, particularly those in the kidnapping business of innocent citizens to pack their luggage and relocate out of Rivers State and its environs”.

Sir Okiro, who commended the efforts of the Amaechi-led government in donating the device also said the gesture reaffirms the economic vision of President Yar’Adua to launch Nigeria into the league of twenty most developed economics of the world by the year 2020.

In addition, he stated that the Amaechi administration has shown zeal to be in tune with current global security challenges in the prevention of crime.

The police IG remarked that the Niger Delta security crisis has become a national challenge starring everybody in the face, noting that there is no better time to launch the device than now.

He said the role of the police cannot be accomplished without the aid of every citizen since security cannot be left alone for the police.

Earlier in his remarks, Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mr Bala Hassan observed that the project became inevitable considering some of the difficulties faced in combating crimes in the state.

To further beef up security he declared that the Rivers State Government has donated about 100 patrol vehicles, saying the dial 24/7 system would aid criminals tracking and arrest.

Mr Hassan urged banks, individuals, corporate organisations including civil servants to take advantage of the initiative and make the state criminal-free.

The dial 24/7 system is a device used in receiving signals from transmitters placed at strategic points within the state, especially at banks, companies, pipelines, black spots and government institutions.

New commissioners, Ms Patricia Simon-Hart (right) and Mr Moses Ahuebele, at the Rivers State House of Assembly, before their screening, last Tuesday. Photo: Chris Monyanaga