The Commissioner of Police in charge of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Bennett Igweh, has called on residents and indigenes of the nation’s capital to refrain from participating in the planned nationwide protest against harsh economic conditions.
Igweh assured that the police have made significant efforts to maintain peace and security in the FCT, emphasizing that the protest could jeopardize the stability of the area. He urged FCT residents to ensure the capital remains safe by avoiding the protest.
Speaking while parading some suspected criminals before journalists at the command’s headquarters in Abuja, Igweh said, “I want to appeal specifically to the residents and indigenes and everybody that is in FCT. Please, lions do not destroy their dens. You cannot see a lion who destroys its den, no. I would not like you to join this protest. I plead with you because we have suffered to ensure your safety.
“We have fought those people outside Abuja, we have been to Kaduna, Nasarawa, and Niger to fight criminals so that you can be safe. I have lost men. Last week alone in Gidango, I lost two policemen. The other day, I lost two again. Let our loss pay for the protest. I want to plead with you.
“We don’t need you to be in the streets before somebody will say he is trying the police might. Or you will say, you will do this, you will do that. Please, please, don’t destroy where you are living.”
Igweh noted that the government is doing its best by providing good roads and other amenities in the FCT, saying, “If you check, the government has provided good roads. Whether it’s from the minister of FCT or the president, check the roads in FCT. From Wuse to anywhere you can check, even in the hinterlands.
“They are trying their best. I don’t need to talk to anybody, but I’m saying it because we have been in FCT. We know when there are changes. There are changes now in FCT. And we don’t want miscreants to come from outside the FCT to come and start destroying them. We will go back to square one where we were before. I plead, I beg of you, do not join this protest.”
He concluded by urging residents to continue making the FCT safe, saying, “Let us continue collectively to make FCT safe. Let them go and do what they want to do. But not with us. Act maturely. Act like people who appreciate. Even the loss we have been losing to ensure your safety. Use it to appreciate us. If you give it to us, we will be very happy. We will continue to provide security for you. God bless all of you.”
