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Defend yourselves – IG tells police officers, sets up 9-man committee
BY NICHOLAS ABE
The Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, has told personnel of the Nigeria Police Force that they have right to defend themselves against physical attacks or danger and subsequently encouraged them to protect themselves.
“Inasmuch as we are aware that the government is behind us; so, we would encourage you to keep performing your duties. [wpdiscuz-feedback id=”gdbjgaqkuj” question=”Do you agree with the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, on this?” opened=”1″]We would encourage you to be professional, to be civic, but if anybody touches you, if anybody comes to assault you, you can also protect yourself.[/wpdiscuz-feedback]
“When we talk of human rights, the police are human; so, the rights of police officers would also be protected. So, we are sending the message that legally, we have the right to protect ourselves,” Adamu admonished his men.
The IGP spoke on Friday during an assessment tour of the Federal Capital Territory Police Command, Abuja, where he also encouraged the operatives who had abandoned the streets for the past five days following the killing of about 22 policemen in the violence that trailed the #EndSARS nationwide protest, after the protest was hijacked by hoodlums.
Adamu alleged that the #EndSARS protesters were out to demoralise the personnel, adding that the government and the Nigeria Police Force would soon roll out packages for the families of the deceased officers.
He stated, “The unity of this country lies in the support that is given to police officers because if you are demoralised, the tendency is for criminals to take over the public space and the country is relying on us to make sure that the public space is not taken over by the criminals. So, no amount of provocation, no amount of insult would make us shy away from our responsibilities.”
Adamu insisted that the police acted professionally and exercised commendable restraints while some paid the supreme price during the protest.
READ: ‘Be ready to defend yourselves,’ Ohanaeze tells Igbos in the North
In a statement issued Friday by the police spokesman, DCP Frank Mba, the IGP described Amnesty International report, dated 21st October, 2020, which alleged that the police shot at peaceful protesters as untrue, misleading and contrary to all available empirical evidences.
“The IGP noted that during the protests, officers of the Force used legitimate means to ensure that the protests were carried out in a peaceful manner and in most cases, physically protected and walked side-by-side with the protesters. He reiterated that even when the protests turned violent in some parts of the country, the officers still maintained utmost restraint and did not use excessive force in managing the situations,” Mba said in his statement.
Meanwhile, the IGP has inaugurated a nine-man committee for the assessment of losses suffered by the Force during the #ENDSARS protests across the country.
He said the setting up of the Assessment Committee was informed by the need to properly document the losses suffered by the Force for the purposes of strategic planning, re-construction and re-equipment as well as for future reference.
The Committee, which has CP Abutu Yaro as Chairman, was inaugurated Friday at the Force Headquarters, Abuja. The terms of reference for the committee’s assignment include: physical visit to the scenes of incident and capturing the pictorials of all damages done to police infrastructure and personnel; verifying the fatalities suffered by the police; and establishing the weapons holdings that were lost during the protest.
“The IGP particularly emphasised that the delegates should visit families of deceased police officers and the injured, on behalf of the Force,” the statement added.