One person has been killed while another was seriously injured while reportedly detonating an explosive device during a protest march in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, on Tuesday.
The incident occured near the Presidential Hotel, in Port Harcourt.
Although, the Rivers State Police Command has not issued any official statement on the incident, the protesters were believed to be supporters of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
Meanwhile, the Rivers State government has called on all public and private health facilities in the state to detain any young man who reports to their facilities with a severely dismembered upper limb.
The state’s Commissioner for Health, Dr. Adaeze Oreh, made the call in a voice message sent out to media houses in Port Harcourt.
Oreh said, “The Rivers State government has just received information about a failed attempt to detonate an explosive at the Hotel Presidential axis of Port Harcourt by mischievous and unscrupulous individuals.
“While condemning such malicious and failed attempt to disturb the peace of the state, the Rivers State Ministry of Health hereby calls on all public and private owned medical facilities to be on the alert and look out for a young man with an utterly dismembered upper limb as this injury was sustained in the process of attempting to detonate a device.
“Such an individual and his accomplices, if presented at any of the facilities, should be immediately detained and reported to the Commissioner of Police, Rivers State and the Rivers State Ministry of Health.”
Meanwhile, Commissioner for Police in the state, Olatunji Disu, has assured the people that the Police will continue in its duty of maintaining law and order in the state.
Disu disclosed this when members of a faction of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) staged a peaceful protest to the command headquarters in Port Harcourt.
Disu said, “I want to thank all of you for taking your time to come here today. First and foremost, I want to mention to you, my duty as a policeman is to protect lives and properties. And I give you my word that we are going to protect lives and properties.
“We are not politicians and we will do our best not to join their politics. I thank you so much for all you have done and the support you have given us. I assure you that we will continue to do our job of maintaining law and order. Rivers State is very important state to the economy of our great nation, Nigeria and there must not be breakdown of law and order.”
Earlier in his speech, the NYCN factional chairman in the state, Nwisabari Bani, said the protesters were on the street to thank the Police for what they are doing to secure lives and properties in the state.
He said, “We are here in clear terms and clear message, Rivers State is not at war. We are here to say to the Nigeria Police Force, ‘thank you’ in our very large number.
“It is very sad that in our society, that when a man does something bad, we can pay our flight to Jupiter and back just to write it for people to see. But, when a man takes the right step, he becomes an enemy to few.”
