How AIG Mbu sent Over 50 policemen into cell in Lagos

As­sistant Inspector General of Police in charge of Zone II, Mr. Mbu Joseph Mbu has explained how no fewer than 50 policemen
are being detained in police cells in Lagos on his orders for dressing shabbily. According to Mbu, the of­fences committed by the de­tained policemen and officers ranged from wearing dirty uni­forms and bathroom slippers to carrying rifles while not in uniform.
He declared that the offences committed by the detained of­ficers were against the police Code of Conduct.
The police boss spoke while fielding questions from jour­nalists after a closed-door lec­ture with senior police officers at the Ogun State Command, Eleweran, Abeokuta.
Mbu stressed that about 70 per cent of officers lack disci­pline, saying that he was sure that those in detention now would change for the better within a month.
He said, “What I have no­ticed is that there is much in­discipline among policemen; they dress anyhow. Come to Lagos, they are more than 50 in my cell.
“They dress the way they like, they wear bathroom slip­pers, they wear mufti and carry rifles, this is not part of the police work. They are in the cell already, they are being punished and I know my men, within the next one month, they will change.”
Mbu also dispelled rumours by opposition politicians, espe­cially those of the All Progres­sives Congress that his posting to Lagos was for elections pur­poses, adding that his job was to maintain law and order.
The police boss however warned politicians to conduct themselves properly during the elections, saying that all politi­cal offenders would be arrested, no matter their status.
While agreeing that the po­lice have critical roles to play in the elections, Mbu noted that the activities of the of­ficers would go a long way in determining the acceptability or otherwise of the outcome of the elections.
He said, “I am not here to do the biding of the Federal Gov­ernment, Ogun State is part of Nigeria, I am here to maintain law and order. Everybody here is for our own perfection. This is my first visit to Ogun State Command which is under my zone and to encourage the po­licemen that I am here to give them support and to advise them that we have a critical part, a very important part to play in the forthcoming elections.
“And our actions and activi­ties will go a long way to de­cide these elections. So, I have come here to tell them that we must remain impartial in order to have free, fair and peace­ful elections and violence-free elections. We must remain im­partial and as far as the law is concerned, we are not going to respect anybody and whoever you are, you come to the poll­ing booth, vote and go out peace­fully.
“Anybody who comes there to campaign, even if he is the Chief Executive of a state, a con­stable at the polling unit will stop him.
“Politicians have their own opinions to be apprehensive about my posting, when I was posted to Oyo State as a Com­missioner of Police, why were they not apprehensive? I am here to make sure everywhere is calm, I am here on police post­ing, I am not here for elections, I am posted as AIG zone II and it falls within the elections period, I am here to make sure everything goes peacefully.
“But, the police will arrest anybody that commits any elec­toral offence, anybody that is found with arms would be arrest­ed by the police and anybody we can’t arrest, we will make sure we recover the arms by force.
“During these elections, no politician or their followers should shoot at any policeman. If you shoot any of my policemen, my policemen will shoot back in self defence.”