“Nobody Was Shot In Ughelli, Protesters Were Justifiably Dispersed With Tear Gas” — Police

By Daniel Dafe

Delta State Police Command has debunked reports by some online media platforms that said policemen shot at peaceful protesters in Ughelli North Local Government Area on Monday.

The Command said this in a statement signed by SP Edafe Bright and made available to Oasis Magazine on Monday evening.

The statement reads in part: “The Command wishes to state that nobody was shot during the protest, however, the use of tear gas was rightly used to disperse the protesters. For the avoidance of doubt and to put the record straight, the Command wishes to state as follows;

“On 6th May 2024, at about 1130 hours, some members of Oteri community, Ughelli approached the Area Commander Ughelli and requested that Policemen be withdrawn from the express road. The Area commander declined and informed them that the deployment was in compliance with the directive of the Commissioner of Police, CP Abaniwonda Olufemi on the need to ensure police presence in that area to prevent kidnapping and other crimes.

“Surprisingly, women from the community in their numbers forcefully stormed the Area command premises in a violent protest, beating up a policeman in the process, and they were dispersed with the use of tear gas. The report making rounds that Policemen shot at peaceful protesters is false and should be completely disregarded.”

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Injured policeman

The statement continued: “The Commissioner of Police, Delta State, CP Abaniwonda Olufemi sues for calm and reiterates that the Command will not succumb to pressure from any quarters because the adequate protection of life and property is the constitutional mandate of the Police and remains the priority of the Command.”