By POLYCARP AUTA

Police in Plateau have sealed the Secretariats of all the 17 Local Government Areas in the state.

This is contained in a statement issued by DSP Alfred Alabo, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) on Thursday in Jos.

“The decision followed an order from the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Usman Baba, to seal up the secretariats of the councils.

“The order is due to skirmishes arising from the suspension of local government chairmen and subsequent appointment of transition committee by the state government,” the police said.

According to him, in a bid to take the mantle of leadership by the appointed chairmen and the resistance by the suspended chairmen was posing serious threats to the peace and security of the state.

“The I-G has ordered the Commissioner of Police in Plateau, Bartholomew Onyeka, to seal up all the secretariats of all the local government areas in the state.

“This is necessary as a result of tensions around the leadership of the councils, and the possible threat that supporters are posing to critical infrastructure, lives and properties in the state.

“The decision to take this action is in accordance with the exercise of our constitutional responsibility as the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), to ensure that the above doesn’t hold sway on the Plateau.

“To this end, the NPF on the Plateau cannot sit down and watch things go wrong under its watch, hence the need to make this critical decision of sealing up the local government secretariats,” he said.

The PPRO warned that the command will deal with anyone who attempts to violate this order, not minding his or her status in the society.

Alabo said that the command called on residents of the state to be peaceful and law abiding at all times.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Gov. Caleb Mutfwang had on 1 June suspended all democratic structures in the state’s 17 local government areas following the recommendation of the Plateau House of Assembly.

Muftwang said that the suspension followed their inability to produce documents related to financial transactions in the various local governments saying all efforts to make them produce the documents were unsuccessful.

He explained that the state government after careful study of the recommendations resolved to suspend the chairpersons in order to conduct an efficient and proper investigation of the development. (NAN)

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