The Police have denied reports that the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Olatunji Rilwan Disu, ordered officers to shoot anyone found bearing illegal firearms.
The refuted report attributed to the IGP was said to have been made by him during a stakeholders’ meeting in Makurdi, Benue State.
Denying the attribution in a statement on Saturday, the Force said the Inspector-General’s remarks at the occasion was misrepresented.
The denial titled, “CLARIFICATION: WHAT THE INSPECTOR-GENERAL OF POLICE ACTUALLY SAID IN MAKURDI,” the Force stated, “At a stakeholders’ meeting in Makurdi, Benue State, Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Rilwan Disu, did not issue any ‘shoot-on-sight’ order as widely misreported.
“What he actually said was that officers have been briefed on Force Order 237, which governs the legal and operational conditions for firearm use, and that they know when it is appropriate to deploy their weapons in line with established Rules of Engagement,” the statement said.
It added that Disu also made it clear that illegal possession of arms and violent killings would not be tolerated across the country.
“He further stressed that illegal arms possession and killings would not be tolerated,” the statement read further.
