The Rivers State Police command has implored Governor Nyesom Wike not to lift the curfew he imposed following strings of attacks on security structures and personnel in the state.
Nnamdi Omoni, the spokesman of Police in the state, made the appeal at a news briefing in Port Harcourt, the state capital.
According to Omoni, the nighttime curfew has helped the police and other security agencies respond timely to distress calls. He said that threats to security have fallen following the imposition of the curfew about two weeks ago.
“The curfew was imposed essentially to arrest the trend of attacks on police. Since it was imposed, that attack has seized abruptly and we are leveraging on it. I think the governor should still delay it (curfew) for some time because it has been assisting us,” said Omoni, a superintendent of police.
About two months ago, armed men who came to be known euphemistically as ‘Unknown Gunmen,” targeted security agents in Rivers, killing them at road checkpoints, police stations, and other places where the saw the operatives.
The 8.30 pm to 6 am curfew has enabled the security agencies restrategize their response to the onslaught from the gunmen.
“We are driving the criminals away from Rivers State. So, when their remnants have been rounded off, then the curfew can be lifted.
“We appeal to the governor to allow the curfew to continue because it is assisting us,” he stated, noting that the police have recorded some milestone in the past three weeks,” the spokesman explained.
“The curfew imposed by the state government is still on. It has not been relaxed. The governor who made that order is the same person that will rescind or relax it.
“So, to that extent, it is still subsisting. It has not been relaxed. And so far, it has helped tremendously in containing criminal activities in the state,” Omoni said.
Residents of the state should continue to observe the curfew and report suspicious movements within their neighborhood to the police for prompt action, Omoni urged them.
