The efforts of the police in Edo State to curb the recent incidence of violence believed to have been masterminded by politicians in the state have met with opposition as the political heavyweights have been going round intimidating or trying to use their influence to disrupt the ongoing investigation been conducted by the law enforcement agents to unravel and bring the culprits to justice just as some of the residents have given kudos to the police for a job well done.
Investigation by Saturday Independent show that the police, who have been working round-the-clock to get to the root of the recent string of politically motivated violence in the state and bring the culprits to face justice have been constantly, bombarded by phone calls from some powerful personalities believed to be the godfathers of some of those that been arrested so far in connection with the violence.
Daily, emissaries are said to be sent to the police by these godfathers to let their ‘boys’ off-the-hook with a promise to curtail their excesses in future.
Already some of the hoodlums loyal to some prominent politicians in the state were charged to court by the police.
Sources close to the state police command told Saturday Independent that the pressure is becoming so much on the state Commissioner of Police, Folusho Adebanjo and some of his lieutenants that they have in most instances switched-off their mobile phones so as to avoid some of the calls from ‘powerful’ individuals.
It would be recalled that the state police command have earlier announced the arrest of some suspects in connection with some of the politically motivated violence in the state with a promise to arrest more and take them to court for prosecution.
However, in a telephone chat, the acting PPRO of the state police command, Ejiroro Ahwara, said the command has taken most of those arrested so far for been involved in the politically motivated violence in the state to court and the process of prosecuting them have commenced.
