Owerri residents decry police, touts’ harassment – Vanguard

Angry reactions have continued to trail the activities of some policemen that aid touts who harass, intimidate and extort motorists in Owerri municipality.

Vanguard investigations revealed that these armed policemen position themselves in some major entry points into Owerri, stop cars, demand for vehicle particulars and invite the touts who then demand for all manner of emblems.

A senior official in one of the aluminum factories in Owerri, who simply identified himself as Moses, lamented that “these touts accompanied by their armed police escorts, almost rammed into my car in front of Imo Hotels, Owerri.”

Reacting to the ugly development, the Correspondent of Nigerian Compass, Mr Steve Uzoechi, who witnessed these people in action, lamented that the last place anybody would expect policemen to operate in full uniform is among touts.

Police arrest killers of journalist – Daily Trust

The police in Abuja yesterday paraded five suspect arrested over the killing of Efenji Efenji, a former reporter of the Africa Independent Television (AIT).

Efenji was stabbed to death at a garden in Karu, Abuja during Valentine celebrations.

The Federal Capital Territory Commissioner of Police John Haruna said the suspects ‘jointly’ killed Efenji. “Overwhelming evidence has been gathered to enable diligent prosecution of the suspects in court,” he said.

Those arrested are Chidiebere John, Augustine Ogbonna, Vitus Ogbu, Raphael Madu and Paul Akpa.

Haruna said Efenji was stabbed with a broken bottle in a brawl with the suspects.

“One of the suspects, Ogbonna, requested to dance with Efenji’s wife, Lyndia, while he (Efenji) was sitting around. When he refused to allow Ogbonna to dance with his wife, a fight ensued and he was killed,” the CP said.

Nigeria Police, a failure – FG – The Punch

The Federal Government on Thursday described the Nigeria Police Force as a failure.

The government said despite the huge resources it had spent on the Force, its members were yet to reciprocate this gesture with their commitment to the job.

The Minister of Police Affairs, Dr. Ibrahim Lame, who conveyed government’s displeasure to the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Ogbonna Onovo, at a meeting in his office, called on the police top hierarchy to wake up from its slumber or government would have no option that to wield the big stick.

He listed areas in which the government had been good to the police to include increment in salary and increase in the capital budget of the Force.

Before now, a constable in the police was being paid N7, 000, which has now been increased to N21, 000 while in 2009, the Police had about N21bn as its capital budget. The budget was increased to about N30bn in 2010.

He said the crime rate and extra-judicial killings were too much and that government could no longer fold its arms while its citizens were dying as if there was no police in the country.