News Obiaks News

The Nigeria Police Force said on Friday that a former Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, and an Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Joseph Mbu, is still in service since his redeployment to Plateau State. It would be recalled that the police officer was almost always in the news, especially during the period President Goodluck Jonathan was in power.

He was allegedly controversial in his speeches and actions and this made many accused him of being partisan in the discharge of his duty. He was once posted to Lagos state during the reigns of former President Good luck Jonathan and many saw it as an excuse to oppress voters and make them them vote for the then central ruling party, the PDP. Mbu had been off the news for quite a while now, especially since the former President lost out in the polls earlier this year. Many had been wondering about his whereabouts, but the police authorities have come out to state that Mbu is still with the force.

The Force Public Relations Officer, Olabisi Kolawole, stated this following the claim by some activists that Mbu’s quietness betrayed his controversial bearing, wondering if he was still in the Force.

She said in a text message on the inquiry, ‘‘He is still with the Force; posted to the Police Staff College, Jos, Plateau State, as Commandant.’’ A popular legal practitioner, Mr. Jiti Ogunye, had noted that it was unlike the police officer to keep away from the limelight, knowing his antecedents during the reigns of the former President Good luck Jonathan, when Mbu was always in the news.

He said, ‘‘One is tempted to conclude that Mbu has left the Force because of his penchant for unguarded public utterances. It is not like him to keep quiet for so long. He is known to speak even more than the spokesperson of the Force. This made us to wonder if he is still in service.’’

Besides, a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Ikeja branch, Mr. Monday Ubani, said the change of leadership in the country could be responsible for the quiet nature of Mbu.

He added, ‘‘The police officer is very intelligent and independent-minded. I discovered this when I interacted with him. He is well loved by his junior officers because he cares about their welfare.’’

Mbu was at loggerheads with the then governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi, when he was serving as the CP in the state. Things got even worse when the then Rivers State Governor perceived Mbu as a messenger to the former President.

Upon his redeployment to the Federal Capital Territory as CP in 2014, Mbu described himself as the lion who tamed ‘the leopard of Port Harcourt’ apparently referring to Amaechi. While serving as CP in the FCT, he banned the #BringBackOurGirls group from holding street protests but the then IG, Mohammed Abubakar, later overruled the directive. While he was redeployed to Lagos to oversee the 2015 general elections, he threatened to kill 10 persons for every policeman killed in the line of duty.