The outgone Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Tunde Ogunsakin, has identified robbery, kidnapping and cultism as the major challenges his command faced while on duty in the state.
Ogunsakin, who spoke at a validatory press briefing in Port Harcourt on Thursday, said his command embraced the rule of engagement in fighting crime in the state.
“The three challenges we faced in Rivers State are cultism, kidnapping and armed robbery. We set up anti-cultism unit, which reported directly to me. The unit checked the activities of cultists who were terrorising the state.
“Also kidnapping constitutes a major concern for the state and as such, we undertook the task of tackling it from different angles. We sought to sensitize and involve every member of the society in the fight against kidnapping and its perpetrators,” he said.
According to Ogunsakin, this informed the launching of a campaign in Port Harcourt that was attended by the different stakeholders in the society.
“As a matter of fact, in the area of kidnapping overseen by the anti-kidnapping unit, we have recorded a reduction of the incidence by about 25 percent in the past three months, a build-up on the 49 percent reduction in the previous quarter with a total 23 cases as against 31 cases in the previous quarter,” he said.