Agatu Killings Were Exaggerated, Says IGP
The Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase, has said that the casualty figure from the Agatu killings in Benue State were “over exaggerated.”
Arase, who spoke in Minna yesterday during an interactive session with officers and men of the Niger State Command in continuation of his nationwide familiarisation tour said: “I was around; I travelled to Agatu and I did not see where 300 people were buried.
“When people are killed in a clash like this, you don’t just bury; you must take the body to the police station before you bury. We don’t have that number of people.”
Arase said the Police High Command has completed arrangements to check the incidence of cattle rustling around the country, adding that the police would next week start what he called ‘Metro patrol’ designed to arrest cattle rustlers.
He said the police force would not allow criminals to destabilise the country, adding that everything would be done to bring crime rate to barest minimum.
The IGP described as untrue insinuations that crime rate in Nigeria was on a high side, saying that people should compare the crime rate in South Africa, the U.S. and some other countries with Nigeria before making their conclusions.
Arase, however, directed the immediate withdrawal of policemen from politicians and deploy such policemen to regular police duty, pointing out that only “high risk” politicians should be allowed to have orderlies.
On the welfare of policemen across the country, Arase described the deplorable condition of police barracks as unfortunate, stressing that the force was already seeking for funds to rehabilitate them.
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