Reports of the Kwara State Police Command partaking in the demolition of late Olusola Saraki’s property in Ilorin have sparked diverse reactions.
According to the State’s Police Spokesperson DSP Okansani Ajayi, the Kwara State Police Command has dismissed allegations of law enforcement officers using live ammunition and firing tear gas canisters during the demolition.
Ajayi also disclosed that the State Commissioner of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has instructed a thorough investigation into the demolition to verify the authenticity of the claims.
The statement released reads in part:
“Our anti-crime deployment during this period has nothing to do with any demolition exercise in the state.
It is therefore shocking to the commissioner of police to hear the news of policemen shooting life ammunition and firing teargas canisters at the scene of a demolition exercise.
For the purpose of emphasis, the command wishes to immediately dispel the insinuations that the men reported having been firing indiscriminately during the demolition exercise were deployed by the Kwara state police command.
No policeman was deployed by the command for any demolition exercise anywhere in the state and no policeman deployed for anticrime duties during the Christmas and new year celebrations fired a single shot of ammunition or canister during this period.
The command hereby for the umpteen time wishes to reiterate the irrevocable commitment of the commissioner of police to principles of fairness, justice and the rule of law while making police service available and accessible to the people of Kwara state.”