From Aloysius Attah, Onitsha
The newly appointed Commissioner of Police in the Anambra State Command, Monday Bala Kuryas, has sent a message to all criminals in the state, warning them to repent for good or relocate from the state, adding that the long arm of the law has been fortified to deal with them.
Kuryas, the 29th Commissioner of Police to serve in Anambra State, in a maiden address to the media and officers of the Command at the headquarters in Awka, disclosed that he has been fully briefed after assuming duties a few days ago on the crime situation and security challenges in the state.
He listed those challenges to include the menace of “one-chance” robbery gangs, armed robbery, kidnapping, cultism, illegal revenue collectors and disputes over land, kingship and boundaries, famer-herder clashes and sundry offences, noting that the Command under his predecessor, AIG John Abang, recorded many successes in curbing their menace and prosecution of capital offenders as well as the general maintenance of law and order.
He acknowledged the support of the Anambra State Government for the operations and activities of the Police Command and its personnel, and disclosed that in in keeping with the vision of the Inspector-General of Police, to ‘make Nigeria safer and more secure for economic development and growth,’ he Command under his watch will take drastic measures to curb crime.
‘Therefore, all our efforts and energies shall be mobilised and deployed towards the prevention of crimes; and the successful apprehension of criminals that would test our resolve. The Command under my watch shall reinvigorate Operation Puff Adder II and give it more bite to tackle cultism, robbery, kidnapping and illegal revenue collections particularly in Onitsha, Nkpor, Obosi, Oba, Enugu-Agidi road, Nnobi/Alor road and Nnewi,’ the police chief stated.
‘This is a clarion call to all officers and men of the Command to brace up for the task ahead. My advise to cultists, robbers, kidnappers and other hoodlums in the state is for them to have a rethink and purge themselves or relocate from the state.’
He also warned proponents of fake news to desist from such acts or face the full wrath of law, and also urged officers and men of the Command to be civil in their dealing with members of the public and also shun every corrupt act, promising that the Command under his watch will sustain an existing inter-agency collaboration and respect for rule of law and human rights.
The commissioner solicited the support of the media in achieving the goal of making Anambra the safest state in Nigeria.
‘Another menace is the issue of fake news which has the capacity to cause widespread disaffection, chaos, violence or disruption of the public peace. May I use this medium to warn the purveyors of such news through whatever means to desist henceforth; or face the full wrath of the law whenever they are apprehended.
‘Inspite of our resolve to fight violent crimes and cultism to a standstill, efforts would be made to employ Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) strategies and community policing principles where applicable and germane to specific problems and issues.
‘Furthermore, I am not unmindful of other challenges bordering on professional misconduct on the part of our officers and men such as extortion, unlawful detention and incivility to members of the public among others. In this vein, I urge all personnel of the Command to eschew corrupt practices and indiscipline. The Command will sustain the existing inter-agency collaboration and improve on our respect for the rule of law and fundamental human rights in accordance with international best practices.
‘I want to assure all “Ndi Anambra” both at home and in Diaspora that the Command under my watch will continue to work assiduously to sustain the status quo of Anambra as the safest state in the country. It is also pertinent to emphasize here that, the safety and security of lives and property in the State will not be possible without the cooperation of well meaning members of the public and religious/community leaders.
‘Your trust in the ability of the police and other security agencies will continue to enhance safe and secure environment for all residents in the State. I want to solicit the support and understanding of the members of the media (fourth (4th) Estate of the Realm) in the resolve of the Police Command to make Anambra State safer for all and sundry,’ he stated.
