Fresh facts have emerged on what transpired at the orderly room trial of six policemen attached to the escort team of Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike, who were on Friday dismissed from the Force.

An inside source told Independent how the policemen were grilled on matters of the December 10 legislative rerun elections in Rivers State for two days while their interrogators brought in two different sets of witnesses to confront the dismissed officers.

The source claimed that one of the officers who narrated how they were subjected to a summary trial before the panel set up by the Inspector-General of Police, IGP, Idris Abubakar, had reported that their interrogators forced them to admit in their statements that they fired gunshots at the polling unit.

One of the interrogators was said to have told the policemen to include in the statement that the Governor’s convoy fired shots at people on the election day and when they refused he went into a rage and dealt a slap on one of the officers.

Apart from the activities of the December 10 legislative election in the state, the attack on the Governor’s police escort men were also traced to misgivings over the tough battle between Governor Wike and his predecessor, Chief Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi during the 2015 general election in the state.

The police orderly to Amaechi was reportedly sacked over alleged meddling with political and campaigns, which was against the ethics of the police service. “The officer who interrogated us asked us ‘do you know that Amaechi’s ADC was also dismissed’. We said no, we don’t know about that”, one of the police officers was quoted as reporting.

Twenty one police officers from Governor Wike’s escort team were whisked to the Force headquarters on December 23 for interrogation by the police panel.

“They forced us to write a statement that we fired gunshots at the polling unit. We were intimidated to the extent that one of the policemen was slapped by the officer who wanted us to tell lies that the Governor’s convoy fired the shot”, said a source.

“At about after 12, the day we arrived Abuja, they took us to the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS, cell at Area 11. Our trial started the next day.

“The next day being Christmas Day, we were tried again. And at this point they brought witnesses to identify who fired gunshot on the election day. The witnesses said it was the SARS people who fired on that day. The witnesses were brought from Federal Monitoring Unit, FMU. They fired because they wanted to escape from the polling unit with the election materials.

“On December 28 they brought another four witnesses to lie that it was the Governor’s convoy that fired on that day.They asked the witnesses to point out among the 21 of us who fired? The witnesses said they could not identify any of us.

“On December 29 they now read the charges to us saying that 15 of us have been acquitted and were free to go but six have been dismissed. They said the six officers escorted the governor to the polling unit with arms. Our charges were disobedience to lawful order and misconduct”, the source hinted.

The source also noted that the effect of the 2015 general elections equally played out in the case as one of the policemen dismissed was said to have been victimised because of his role in the last general elections.

“We were given names of people to implicate in the case while at the police headquarters”, he said.

Meanwhile, Governor Wike has declared  that  the  government and people of the state will stand with the six policemen dismissed  by the Police High Command for political reasons because they committed no crime known to law.

The governor  noted  that the government and people of Rivers State will pursue the matter through laid down legal processes to its logical conclusion.

He spoke on Saturday in Ahoada East Local Government Area during the defection of former APC chieftain and one-time Ahoada East Local Government Chairman, Mr Cassidy Ikegbidi.
He said: “They gave me policemen for my protection, but before I knew it, they have  dismissed them. They think they are punishing them, but Rivers State will stand with them forever.

“By the time we finish, they will  realise that they have favoured the so-called  dismissed policemen.  In Rivers State, we don’t  abandon people. No amount of intimidation, will make me abandon these innocent policemen”.
Governor Wike added: “The Policemen committed no offence. Simply because they followed their boss, they said they should be dismissed.

“They want to discourage policemen from protecting me. For me, I am not worried. I am a village man and a grassroots politician. Before you kill me, you would have killed so many people”.

He said that Rivers PDP was on ground in the state because it delivers projects to the people.

The governor noted that Rivers people will continue to protect their votes despite the evil machinations of the APC.

“Nobody will intimidate me to change my mind. If you like bug my phone. As far as I will never plan coup, I will never be afraid. A man with the people will never beg those who are bent on intimidating us.

“The blood pressure of APC leaders is extremely high. I will continue to make their blood pressure grow higher. From now on, I have changed my name from high tension to Mr Project.”

However, the Rivers Government as well as the leadership of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have condemned the dismissal of the six policemen by the Police authorities.

The Rivers Government says it views the dismissal of the officers “with infinite sadness”, while the PDP called for their immediate reinstatement into the Force.

The state Commissioner for Information and Communication, Dr Austin Tam-George, in a statement in Port Harcourt alleged that the policemen were “subjected to a secret and unfair trial, on totally fictitious charges of professional misconduct” in connection with the legislative rerun elections in the state on Dec. 10, 2016.

“This is a tragic day for professionalism and the respect for human rights in the Nigeria Police.

“The dismissed officers committed no crime, other than foil a carefully orchestrated electoral heist by officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), in collusion with the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Nigeria Police.

“The claim by the police that the affected officers misused their firearms, while in the convoy of Gov. Wike on Dec. 10, 2016 is a wrong and cruel fabrication.

“Gov. Wike did not depart from his official premises on the day of the election, and therefore, had no use for an armed convoy.

“We urge Nigerians to demand the immediate reinstatement of these officers, and for the Inspector-General of Police to allow an independent inquiry,” Tam-George said.

The PDP described in the negative, the decision of the police hierachy to dismiss from service the six police officers.

The PDP said in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary Prince Dayo Adeyeye that it disagreed with the reason for which the police threw the men out of service.

“The offence adduced for their secret trial and subsequent dismissal was a mere concoction and a ruse”, the party said.