A spokesman of the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) urged the Nigerian Police Force to sustain efforts aimed at uprooting criminal hideouts in the country following the successful raid at Kuduru forest in Kaduna state where about 250 criminals were killed.
MURIC Director, Prof. Ishaq Akintola, who made the commendation in a statement, said that the criminals had been making life unbearable for residents of the area.
“We commend the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) for storming Kuduru forest in Birnin Gwari, Kaduna state, a notorious headquarters of kidnappers and other criminals who have been making life unbearable for innocent citizens.
“About 250 criminals were killed in the attack while one policeman died during the raid and another in the hospital.
“Now that they have been given a taste of their own pudding, they must realise that crime does not pay. We are proud and fully endorse this police action,” he said.
The director recalled that MURIC advised Nigerian security agencies some time ago to invade criminals’ den wherever they might be.
“How can hoodlums create republics of their own within a republic? The only solution to that is to always storm their hideouts, and make it difficult for them to reassemble.
“We also commiserate with families of the policeman who died during the raid and the one who died during treatment.
“They are in our prayers. But most importantly, we remind their families that these men died as heroes and patriots. They must be proud of them.
“It is always better to go down as great men than as cowards and criminals,” he said.
MURIC appealed to Nigerians to repose more confidence in the ability of the police and other security agencies to protect the citizenry.
“Dabbling into new experiments which have not been tested before may create anarchy in the Nigerian security architecture.
“Successful operations such as the storming of Kuduru forest bear eloquent testimony to the ability of the Nigerian Police to protect us.
“What we have on the ground is good enough. Let us support them with money, equipment, goodwill, and prayers instead of indulging in mischief all over the place,” he said.
He appreciated the Inspector General of Police, Muhammed Adamu, for promptly sending emissaries to visit policemen who sustained injuries during the raid.
He, however, appealed to him to take adequate measures to compensate families of the two deceased policemen.
“Emergency relief should be sent to the families to cushion the effect of the loss of their breadwinners.
“As an epilogue, we charge the NPF to make the storming of Kuduru forest the beginning of proactiveness in crime-fighting in Nigeria.
“Constant raids should be conducted on known and suspected criminal hideouts. This will destabilise them and make it difficult for them to strategise,” he said.
NAN