… Accuses FG of diverting Rivers’ armoured choppers to fight Boko Haram
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has accused the Federal Government of diverting two armoured helicopters it procured to fight crude oil theft and piracy in the state to fight Boko Haram.
A statement issued by his Special Assistant on Media, Kelvin Ebiri, disclosed that the Rivers State Government purchased the helicopters worth over $10m and handed them over to the Nigerian Air Force to tackle insecurity in the state.
“Governor Wike, has therefore, warned that the state will not hesitate to withdraw the gunboats it is about to present to the Army, Navy and Police, if they are deployed for use in other states,” the statement reads.
Wike spoke yesterday while presenting 29 operational vehicles to the Nigeria Police at the re-launch of the Rivers State security outfit code named, C.4.I at the Government House, Port Harcourt.
He explained that his administration had continually demonstrated its resolve to rid the state of criminality through provision of operational vehicles, gunboats and other support for security agencies.
He, however, expressed disappointment that some of the equipment provided by the state government to support security agencies in the fight against crime were often diverted to other states of the country to the detriment of Rivers State.
“The Nigerian Air Force should know that the Rivers State government gave them two armoured helicopters. The former Chief of Air Staff never wrote to thank us.
“Which state has done that for Nigerian Air Force in this country? Even while he was former Chief of Air Staff, he never thanked us, but he was using our armoured helicopter.”
He added that with the relaunch of C.4.I security outfit, the Rivers State Police Command should be more proactive in fighting crime and urged the police and other security agencies to take the war against criminality to the criminals.
On his part, Commissioner of Police (CP), Friday Eboka said the 29 operational vehicles, 200 bulletproof vests and helmets would serve as moral booster for the personnel of the C.4.I, as they strive to reduce crime and criminality in the State.
He warned kidnappers, cultists and armed robbers to have a rethink, as Rivers State was no longer safe for their nefarious activities.
Meanwhile, Governor Wike, has dissociated himself from those who are agitating for the scrapping of counterpart funding system for basic education in the country.
He declared his administration’s stance on such calls when the Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, visited him at Government House, Port Harcourt yesterday, stressing that the counterpart funding gave state governments the opportunity to show their commitments to the provision of quality education in their states.
