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By Christopher Oji
For Commissioner of Police, Delta State, Mr Ari Mohammed Ali, nothing like unknown gunmen in the state. He boasted that police were unmasking every trace of the hoodlums: “Nothing of such exists in Delta due to the relentless intelligence gathering and 24 hours alertness to combat all criminal activities and rebellion in the state.”
He vowed the command would resist any attempt by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and any criminal group to foment trouble: “I was sent to Delta State with the mandate to maintain peace and order. On that mandate I stand. Delta State is not part of IPOB’s agenda, and the people should not be dragged into it.
“In fact, I don’t know the devil that sold the idea of thinking that my command would take that rubbish from them. They sneaked into the state and started committing havoc, but they met their Waterloo.
“We unmask gunmen and we expose them. One time, before they started committing havoc, some faceless people started circulating some posters, talking of sit-at-home. I warned them to steer clear of the state because Delta does not have reason to be part of them, but they would not listen. They started attacking police stations and killing my men. Their modus operandi left traces of IPOB.
“They committed a lot of atrocities. On May 24, they killed three police officers at Okpanam, in Oshimili North. On May 18, they burnt four vehicles along Illah Road. On June 5, they shot dead a commercial motorcycle operator and a policeman. They went to Umu-Utu and killed two policemen and carted away two AK-47 rifles.
“They went to Ashaka, although they didn’t kill anybody, but they torched the police station. They also attacked Akwukwu-Igbo. They attacked my men at Isele-Azagba, after which they attacked Customs officers on duty; chased them into the bush and set their vehicles on fire.
“I led the rescue mission, where I ordered the Customs officers to come out of the bush. I met the fire burning. That was how they attacked my men at Agbor. My men were just coming down from their vehicle to pin down on their vintage point and they came under heavy gunfire. They gunned down my men and carted away two rifles.
“We have recovered five rifles. One of those rifles was among the two carted away from Agbor Police Division. They caused serious tension for the people. To God be the glory, they met their Waterloo after a fierce gun battle. We neutralised 10 of them.”
The police boss said that it was the same syndicate that was responsible for all the atrocities, pains, tears and sorrow for the people: “If they survive the attack, I have sent them a message, which they will take back to others; that Delta State Police Command under my watch will not tolerate IPOB and their stupid sit-at-home order.
They should not try me, because I am not here to joke.
“After the death of the 10-man IPOB gang, we have not had problems.
They can’t operate in Delta State, because we are ready 24 hours.”
He said without God and his dedicated personnel, this wouldn’t have been possible: “I thank God and my personnel, especially the rank and file who are always on the field. We recovered 337 assorted arms, 12,456 ammunition/Cartridges. We arrested 339 armed robbery suspects, 116 for kidnapping, 899 for cultism and 108 for murder.
“We rescued 123 kidnapped victims; recovered 14 Improvised Explosive Device (IED) and 244 vehicles. We nipped many armed robberies and kidnappings in the bud. We are very proactive to stop so many crimes from being committed.”
Averting attacks on religious worship centres: “Before the Owo massacre, I detailed plainclothes and covert policemen to religious homes, especially the big churches and mosques. Wherever there is a gathering, whether religious, political or social, my men must be there.
“If the DPOs or area commanders and my special squads are not on ground in such gathering, if anything untoward happens, they will all be treated like accomplices to the crime.
“They don’t wait for me to remind them that they have to protect churches, especially the big ones, on Sundays. I have told them that terrorists target big churches and gatherings of big populations to tell the government that they are in charge. I don’t want terrorists in my command.
“Robbery and cultism are the major crimes in Delta. If you are caught for robbery or cultism, you will go in for it. If you engage my men or even me during operation, you will regret it. If you are lucky to escape our superior firepower, thank your God.
“If you surrender to us, we arrest you and charge you to court.
Cultism is a major problem. We have arrested so many of them, yet they are still recruiting more persons. Parents should warn their children to steer clear of crime, especially robbery and cultism.”
His message to criminals is simple: “I want criminals of any guise,
IPOB, unknown gunmen, armed robbers or kidnappers, to know that crime is crime. My duty as a policeman is to fight crime. That is what I am paid with taxpayers’ money to do. I will fight the enemies of the government to finish.
“It is better for criminals to relocate from Delta or turn a new leaf if they don’t want to incur my wrath. I won’t say because you are youths, I will condone your nefarious activities.
“For the good citizens of Delta State, be assured that your lives and properties are well protected. We are working round the clock to see that you sleep with your two eyes closed. What I need from you is to be law-abiding and to cooperate with the police and other sister agencies by giving us information that will bring progress in the state.
“Security agencies can perform well only when you give information that will lead to the arrest of criminal elements in our midst. When you give information about unscrupulous people in your midst, you are helping yourself because we will arrest them and remove them from your community.
“When there is peace, investors will come and invest and people will be employed. No reasonable investor will come to invest in a crime-prone environment.
“If you don’t want IPOB to destroy your state, report their activities in your area, report their activities to us. You see people converging in an unholy hours, report to the nearest police station. Don’t keep quiet. Begin with your children and neighbours, and crime rate will reduce drastically.”
