According to the police source, since the generating plant has gone missing, the entire police headquarters has been thrown into a blackout, which has greatly affected police duties.
Delta State Police Commissioner Usman Baba Alkali is embroiled in a scam involving a 5000 KVA Mikano power-generating plant which has created confusion and controversy throughout the entire police command in Asaba.
SaharaReporters reliably learned that the Mikano plant was donated to the command by the past administration of Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State and was being used by the command to power the whole command, including the police children’s school and inmates’ cells. However, a few weeks ago, the generating plant was discovered to have been allegedly looted by the State commissioner of police with the support of the officer in charge of the works department of the command.
Narrating the incident to SaharaReporters, a senior police officer in the command who is well abreast with the whole issue and pleaded for anonymity, disclosed that the embattled commissioner of police, Mr. Alkali, allegedly conspired with an assistant superintendent in charge of the works department in the command to allegedly steal the gigantic 5000 KVA Mikano plant under the cover of darkness.
“To the best of my knowledge, the command has never had this kind of commissioner of police who is not bothered about the welfare of his fellow officers. Since the coming of this commissioner of police, Mr. Usman Baba Alkali, the command has been passing through one bad treatment or the other. Officers both senior and junior are suffering seriously. This is the worst and laziest kind of commissioner of police this command has ever had in recent times.
"Now to the issue of the stolen generating plant by the commissioner of police. The generating plant was donated to the command by the Delta State government some years back even before the coming of Mr. Usman Baba Alkali as commissioner of police. And every month, till date the State government, both the past and present, was giving the command over N10 million as security votes to run the command and the generating plant, but this money has been pocketed every month by the commissioner of police to the detriment of the command,” he said.
“The generating plant was serving as an alternative source of electricity to the entire police command, including the police children’s school. All of a sudden, the commissioner stopped fueling the plant and brought a smaller generator, also donated to the officers from the command in Okwe by the State government. Because the generator he brought could not power the command, he had to disconnect all the offices, leaving his own office that was being powered by the generator. To the greatest surprise of everyone, the commissioner quickly summoned his partner in crime, the OC works, conspired and raised a back dated memo to the force headquarters that the plant was bad and could not be repaired.
“And before we knew what was happening, we discovered that the plant was taken to his private home in the North, leaving the command in total darkness. The commissioner is deceiving people, saying that the plant was taken out by men from the works department in the force headquarters because the plant was certified bad and cannot be repaired any more. The question now is how can a commissioner use cronies to sell police property donated by state government to himself at the detriment of his command?
"The commissioner has always complained that he could not continue to use part of the money he collects as security votes from the State government to fuel the plant that consumes over 200 liters of diesel per 24 hours, hence bringing the smaller generator donated to the officers’ mess in Okwe, where the same OC works helped to install to power only the A/C in the commissioner’s office. As we talk now, the commissioner, in a bid to cover up the stealing, is running around to pacify both senior and junior officers in the command,” the source narrated.
According to the police source, since the generating plant has gone missing, the entire police headquarters has been thrown into a blackout, which has greatly affected police duties.
Our correspondent visited the police headquarters and observed that the power plant was empty. He noted that senior and junior police officers could be seen discussing the matter in hushed tones.
Some of the visibly angry officers who spoke with SaharaReporters on the condition of anonymity lamented what they called criminal action of the police commissioner and called on the Delta State government and the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Solomon Arase to step into the matter to investigate it and recover the 5000 KVA Mikano power generating plant.
The officers also called for the immediate sanction and redeployment of both the commissioner of police and OC works.
SaharaReporters reliably learned that the embattled commissioner of police, Mr. Usman Baba Alkali, is currently been faced with an unexpected redeployment.
A police officer attached to the commissioner’s office who pleaded anonymity, disclosed that Mr. Alkali has been redeployed following his alleged undue protection of the Fulani herdsmen in the State and his inability to handle responsibly the recent disturbances and killings by members of the Biafra Independent Movement and Movement for Actualization Sovereign State of Biafra (BIM/MASSOB), leaving several police offices dead.
When contacted on the issue, Mr. Alkali did not respond to calls to his mobile phone, but the acting Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Charles Muka, said he was not aware of such matters.