The police yesterday, 19 June stayed control of the 23 local government secretariats in Rivers State to prevent a further escalation of violence that broke out on Tuesday over the tenure of chairmen and councillors.
The caretaker chairmen appointed and inaugurated by Governor Siminalaiyi Fubara and protesting council helmsmen insisting on tenure extension were denied access to the offices. The death toll from the violence has risen to three with the reported death of an ex-student leader during the mayhem.
The deceased are police inspector David Mgbads, vigilante member, Samuel Nwigwe, and Endwell Ejindu, a former student union leader.
Police Inspector-General Kayode Egbetokun has ordered a probe into the killings. Miffed by the violent protest, the APC urged President Bola Tinubu to declare a state of emergency in Rivers to restore order. Force Spokesman Olumuyiwa Adejobi, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, said in a statement that men of the Force Intelligence Response Team (IRT) have been deployed to the state to apprehend the killers.
