Idowu Owohunwa, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, met with critical stakeholders in the state ahead of March 11 governorship and national assembly elections.
Owohunwa charged them to eschew violence and preach peace, tolerance and rule of law to their teeming followers.
He made the call at the Command Headquarters in Ikeja on Wednesday during a meeting convened to address security concerns within the state.
In the meeting attended by Femi Falana, a senior advocate of Nigeria, his son and rapper, Folarin Falana, alias Falz, and skit maker, Debo Adebayo, popularly known as Mr Macaroni, the police boss also gave the assurance that the Command would not hesitate to protect law-abiding citizens and deal with troublemakers in accordance with the law.
He said, “The specific purpose of this urgent meeting is to review current security developments in the aftermath of the 2023 presidential and National Assembly elections in Lagos State and the tension and wide apprehension emanating from it. This has become imperative granted that from the police operational perspective, since the conclusion of the exercise on Saturday, February 25, 2023, we have responded to not less than 20 security-related calls by Lagosians.
“Instructively, however, nearly 80 per cent of such presumed distress calls was found to be informed by false feedbacks that were largely informed by apprehension and misinformation, and fuelled by fake news from elements that seem to be bent on feasting on the post-election tension to destabilise the peace and order in Lagos State for inexplicable reasons.”
Owohunwa also announced the introduction of Police-Citizens Town hall, a new initiative that borders on citizen engagement.
Some attendees at the stakeholders meeting included human rights lawyer, Femi Falana SAN, Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, a former Vice President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Monday Ubani, among others.