Economic, political saboteurs behind coordinated arson in Rivers, says HURIWA

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has identified economic and political saboteurs as being behind the coordinated arson at some local government areas secretariats in Rivers State.

Reacting to the coordinated attacks on some local councils in the largely Ikwerre jurisdiction, the group’s national coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, condemned the Rivers State Police Command and the Department of State Services (DSS) for their colossal failures, inaction, or passive compromise of intelligence, which permitted the coordinated arson attacks by economic and political terrorists.

HURIWA expressed disappointment that the security forces, primarily the police, which have the elementary duty of internal security, and even the secret police, whose officers are mandated to generate actionable intelligence, did nothing to prevent the massive invasion of local councils by armed political terrorists sponsored to instigate a crisis in Rivers State.

These actions, the group said, are a prelude to their plots for a state of emergency, which in any event cannot lead to the demolition of democratic structures put in place after the 2023 poll that produced the current government in Rivers State.

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HURIWA recalled that suspected political terrorists had set ablaze a newly built section of the council secretariat located at Isiokpo in the Ikwerre Local Council.

The group urged security forces to treat the attackers as terrorists and apply the counter-terrorism law in crushing the uprising.

HURIWA condemned the police for initially announcing that they were withdrawing their services in Rivers State during the Saturday poll, which was understandably condemned massively by cross sections of Nigerians, including the Nigerian Bar Association and lovers of democracy.

It called on politicians to give peace a chance and follow the law, stressing that the institutions of law enforcement must never be seen to take political positions or treat any politicians, no matter how influential or powerful, as being above the law, or else anarchy would be let loose in Nigeria.