The new commissioner of police in Cross River State, Mr Abdulkadir JImoh, has complained about the many road blocks manned by policemen in the country, especially in the state.
He said during his tenure, he will not allow such as the road blocks delay economic progress of the people and state.
JImoh spoke to journalists in his office in Calabar after addressing his officers at the state police command headquarters, stressing that he will not want the police to be seen as the clog in the wheel of progress in the state.
JImoh said: “I want the people to feel our impact positively and I believe in economic development.
“If the Police make it difficult for people to move, the ease of doing business will be very difficult.
“For instance, if a container is coming from Aba to Calabar and you have about 100 road blocks, when are they going to get here?
“I want the entire tactical commander and everybody to get this warning message that I want development in Cross River State.
“I want business to grow in Cross River State.
“I want Cross River State IGR [Internally Generated Revenue] to increase.
“That is why I am going to key into federal government’s ease of doing business and by making sure that there is no bottle neck created by the Police on the road.”
Stressing on honesty, Jimoh said: “My mission in the State is integrity and I am coming with integrity.
“I will not allow anybody to soil my name.
“So, I am appealing to all officers and men to leave above board.
“This is a new dawn, the era of extortion, the era of arbitrarily arrest and unlawful detention is over. I will not tolerate it.
“I believe in accountability.
“Officers and men are going to be accountable for every action they took.
“I believe in honesty, you must be honest with the people of Cross River State.
“You must be honest with your colleagues and you must be honest with the Commissioner of Police,” he said.
