THE Rivers State Government has condemned the sudden withdrawal of soldiers from the Government House in Port Harcourt.
A group of soldiers, who have been
mounting guard at the Government House, were suddenly withdrawn from
their posts on Wednesday, a development that caused panic among workers
within the place.
Speaking with The PUNCH in a
telephone interview on Thursday, the Chief of Staff, Government House,
Port Harcourt, Mr. Tony Okocha, expressed shock that the soldiers could
be withdrawn at a time the state government’s relationship with the
police was not cordial.
He described the situation as dangerous,
and added that the Nigerian nation might not be able to tolerate a
situation where citizens would embrace self-preservation if their
security could not be guaranteed.
“I was in Government House when some
personnel came to tell me that soldiers have been withdrawn from
Government House. What we are seeing now portends danger to our
democracy and even the citizens,” he said.
Speaking on the matter, the State
Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Mr. Felix Obuah, said some
civilians had cashed in on the crisis in the state to disguise as
soldiers in order to punish dissenting voices.
“As a matter of fact, we saw some people
in Army uniform. Some young boys were in Army uniform during the
invasion of the House of Assembly. They came with camouflage Army
uniform. One of them beat up a lawmaker,” he said.
Meanwhile, state government said on
Thursday that it had received a letter from the 2 Brigade of the
Nigerian Army in Port Harcourt, explaining the reason behind the
withdrawal of soldiers from the Government House.
Okocha, told The PUNCH in a
telephone interview that the Army claimed that some soldiers were in
company with the governor during the brawl in the State House of Assembl
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