Members of the Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC) in Ijegun area of Lagos State have commended residents and youths of the area for stoutly defending the vandalisation and burning of the Isheri-Oshun Police Station last week by some hoodlums.
It was a week of rage and carnage in the state as arsonists unleashed terror on public and private facilities, most especially police stations.
Narrating how genuine collaboration between the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of the station, SP Wole Oyedele and the community saved the facility from being destroyed, Isheri-Oshun PCRC Chairman, Chief Ganiyu Bamidele, said: “The #EndSARS protesters first came to the Isheri-Oshun division on Monday, October 19, where the DPO, Wole Oyedele, engaged and advised them to carry out their protest peacefully.
“However, on Wednesday, October 21, some hoodlums under the guise of protesters, came in their hundreds to burn down the police station. The DPO, who had hardly spent five months at the station overseeing Ijegun, Ijeododo, Ijagemo, Isheri-Oshun and some parts of Ikotun, assisted by his officers and the PCRC members, led a team of volunteers from the community who successfully protected the station from vandals.
“The boys, in their hundreds, emerged from Jakande Estate/Bucknor side, but they met resistance from the community with support from members of Oodua Peoples’ Congress (OPC) and vigilance groups. Things would have gone bad, but we thank God we didn’t count any loss in the area,” he said.
Also speaking, Elder Amosu, coordinator of Ijegun joint CDA, the community responded because the DPO had been discharging his duties diligently.
“The communities have seen a lot of improvement on security network, and the DPO is very responsive and friendly. He attends to our calls at all times. In appreciation of his efforts and that of his men, the community at various times assisted in repairing some of their faulty patrol vehicles. And when the hoodlums hijacked the #EndSARS protest, no vandalism was recorded in this area because residents supported the police to defend the community.”
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