The Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 2, AIG Mbu Joseph Mbu, Thursday ordered his men to shoot any electoral offenders who first shoot at his men, as a means of self-defence during the general election.
Mbu who was visited the state Command, Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, while lecturing the policemen on the general election, said,
“That’s why I said don’t touch my policemen. If you shoot my policeman, I will shoot twenty of you, I will shoot a hundred of you because we are coming to you for peace. We are not coming to you to come and kill you.”
He said “anybody who fires at you, fire him back in self-defence. Anybody who fires at you, fire him back in self-defence but don’t fire first. Anybody you see who is firing at other persons, fire him because you are trying to protect that other person because the law permits you. You are empowered to stop that person from causing harm to the other person.”
Speaking further, he said, “It is clearly stated in the constitution that there shall be a Nigeria Police Force for the Federal Republic of Nigeria. There is no other police force. The military can come to us in aid of civil authority. We are the civil authority because we are supposed to deal with harmless civilians. So, we are the civil authorities.”
He therefore said he was in Abeokuta to restore hope in all the policemen and to blow air in them, saying, “You know when you just have a male child, you blow air into his mouth and nose so that he can be like you.”
He said, “I love Nigeria Police, I love being a police officer and I’m very proud to be a police officer because only a police officer can do every other job and no other person can do a police job.”
He said “In aid of civil authorities, we are the one in charge of apprehending offenders before, during or after elections. Every other person that is coming is only coming to help us.
“We are the authority, we are the leading agency. So, you are a leading agency and you must take charge of wherever you are posted.”
He added: “Our duty is to make sure that the elections are conducted freely, fairly, peacefully and violence-free.”
“This is a turning point in the history of the Nigeria Police where two very powerful political parties contesting keenly. So, we have to be very serious.
“We have to be very bold. We have to be very brave. You must remain at your duty post. You must make sure you keep an eagle eye on everybody coming there.
“You must make sure that whatever is in the Electoral Act, whatever is against the Electoral Act, you are there to stop it. You are not there to start greeting honourable or oga how are you, no.
“He said anybody who comes to the polling unit with an entourage of vehicles, you arrest them immediately, saying, “even if the governor comes there with an entourage and with policemen by his side to come and intimidate people, call your senior officers to arrest them whenever they misbehave.”
He added, “Anybody who comes there with people jumping down, don’t be intimidated. Stop them, even if he’s the governor, you have the power to say stop there and he stops there. Your excellency, I don’t like your conduct. The you call your senior officers around.”
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