By Our Reporter with agency report

The Inspector General of Police, Olatunji Disu, has said the conduct of police personnel before, during and after the 2027 general election would make Nigerians happy and proud of the force.

He assured Nigerians that police would ensure professionalism during the forthcoming poll.

Disu stated this while fielding questions from newsmen after the Launch of a book, “The Origin of Women in Nigeria Police Force”, written by 96-year-old Dame Stella Okuyiga, DCP (rted), one of the first 20 pioneer female Officers to join the NPF.

Responding to questions about the police stance on the 2027 election, the IGP said the Force had organized a meeting with police commissioners across the country to ensure professionalism during the polls.

“I want to let you know that we just finished a conference of all commissioners of police and other senior officers. We have had two or three elections recently, and you can see the police did very well, and we did too.

“We have now brought all these experiences together, where we did well and where we did not do well, so that we can perform better in this big election that everybody is looking up to.

“I give you my word. Nigeria Police will do so well, and we will make Nigeria Police so proud, and we will make Nigerians proud.”

On the book written by Okuyiga, Disu said the author was among the first women to join the Nigerian police in 1955, adding that the force is pleased with her achievements.

Disu stated, “Mama is 96 years old, and she has taken her time to put all her experience, institutional knowledge that she has down in the book for us to be able to study it for the generations coming, for women police in the next generation to have something to look up to.

“We in the police, we are starting up the history of not leaving our own, not forgetting our own.

“We are going to ensure that we get copies of this book for all police training institutions, for all police officers to go through to see what it was like to be police officers.”

Speaking, the Nonagenarian (author) and retired DCP expressed happiness that the publication was not just a book, but a part of her that would live on.

She said: “This book launch today is an important day in my life because the book itself is there. But I still live on my life. I still live on because this book will be in libraries all over the world, and they’ll be reading it.

“So I’m so happy that with all that is happening today, I will continue to live forever.”

Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Dr Dagogo Wokama, launched the book wth N20 million.

PUNCH

In the spirit of the “rainbow coalition” all the three National Assembly election candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have stepped down for their All Progressives Congress (APC) counterparts ahead of the 2027 elections.

The deal which was brokered by the FCT minister, Nyesom Wike saw the PDP candidates — Gomna Stephen Gashe (Abaji/Gwagwalada/ Kwali/Kuje), Ahmed Dogara Jacob (Municipal/Bwari), and Angulu Bako (senate) — stepped down from the race, during a stakeholders’ meeting of the rainbow coalition, a cross-party alliance, convened by the minister 

The APC candidates are Danladi Chiya (Abaji/Gwagwalada/ Kwali/Kuje), Shekwogaza Gabaya (Municipal/Bwari), and Philip Aduda, who is seeking a senate seat.

Wike said he was willing to concede the FCT national assembly seats to the APC because President Bola Tinubu resides in the territory.

Wike, who described himself as the “commander of field operations” of Tinubu’s re-election campaign in the FCT and Rivers state, said political differences would not prevent members of the two parties from working towards a common presidential objective.

“Ordinarily, as the national leader of the PDP, I should have told them to allow me to take one. But because the president resides here [FCT], he lives here. I don’t want to share anything with the president. Take senator and the two house of representatives [seats]. But in my state [Rivers], I will take small,” he said.

The PDP candidates pledged their loyalty to Wike, promising to work with him to deliver the FCT for president Bola Tinubu and the APC 

By Tony Chuddy 

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, has revealed that he supported Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma, during his re-election bid in 2023, against Senator Samuel Anyanwu, his political ally

Recall that Anyanwu, the National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), contested against the incumbent governor, Uzodinma in the election where the governor was declared winner in all the 27 local government areas of Imo state by the Independence National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Wike, who made the disclosure during his monthly media briefing on Tuesday, while reacting to his rift with the Imo State governor over the Rainbow Coalition, insisted the governor Uzodimma cannot stop the coalition, which he noted has come to stay with the support of some APC governors 

Governor Uzodimma had through the APC’s Progressive Governors Forum (PGF), kicked against Wike’s rainbow coalition, accusing the minister of f using the coalition to work against the interest of the ruling party in in some states
ahead of the 2027 elections.

The FCT minister, who said he dislikes dealing with people who are not straightforward, insisted that the Rainbow Coalition had come to stay.

Wike said: “When you see Hope Uzodinma, ask him, when he was going for a second term, did I support him or not?

“I supported Uzodinma against the PDP candidate who was my national secretary.

“Rainbow Coalition has come to stay and there is nothing anybody can do about it.

“I deal with people who are straight forward.”