The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Adamu, has commended officers and men of the force over their resilience and professionalism during the #EndSARS protests.
IGP Adamu gave the commendation on Friday during a visit to the Police Command in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to assess the level of damage during the #EndSARS protest in Abuja.
He said that during the protest, some roads were blocked, some vehicles were burnt, and police stations in some part of the country including FCT were burnt with police officers assaulted.
The IGP said the destruction and other criminal activities were done because the protesters were waiting for the police to react.
“I know how you went about protecting the protesters so that they will not be molested, but along the line, the protesters attacked, not only members of the public but also police officers.
“These are criminal activities by the protesters wanting to provoke police personnel to use maximum force against them to justifying police brutality.
“But, with your resilience and professionalism, you were able to show maximum restrain and meet up with the standard that is required in curbing protest without using force,” he said.
He said that the resilience and professionalism demonstrated by the officers had exposed the way Nigeria Police officers, especially those in FCT, were professionally trained to deal with unrest in the country.
According to him, we are here to tell you that government is concerned with what happened during the protest and is solidly behind the police.
He said that the Federal Government was relying on the police to ensure that the public space was not taken over by criminals. So, no amount of provocation and insult will make us shy away from our responsibilities.
IGP Adamu noted that police officers are also humans who have their own right, hence they should protect themselves if assaulted by anyone.
“In as much as we are aware that the government is behind us, we will encourage you to continue to be professional and civic in performing your duties.
“But if anybody touches or assault you, you can also protect yourself because when we talk of human right, the police are human, so the rights of police officers should also be protected.
“We are sending the message that legally, we have the right to protect ourselves,” he said.
In his remark, the Commissioner of Police (CP) in charge of FCT, Mr Bala Ciroma, commended the I-G for the visit, adding that the command had arrested and arraigned 196 suspects in connection to the protest.
He said that 10 of the suspects had been convicted, one discharged, 73 granted bail and 112 remanded in the Correctional Service custody by six mobile courts in the territory. (NAN)
KanyiDaily had earlier reported how some hoodlums have murdered a Police Inspector and cut off his manhood after snatching his AK-47 rifle at a police station in Abakaliki, Ebonyi state.
