PDP Condemns Murder Of Funke, Tasks Buhari, FG

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Saturday condemned what it called the gruesome killing of Funke Olakunrin by gunmen.

The PDP also lamented “the unpardonable lethargy in apprehending Funke’s killers since Friday.”

The party, in a statement by its national publicity secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, said it was “heartrending that under the President Muhammadu Buhari administration, our nation has become a killing field and large funeral palour with insurgents, bandits and assassins having a field day waylaying and killing innocent compatriots, especially those making very useful contributions to the development of our nation.

“Our party is worried that security agencies are rather engaging in debates over the identity of the killers and hurriedly pointing to a case of abduction even before any extensive investigation has been carried out on the horrific and dastardly act.

“The party bewails that the killing of Funke Olakunrin marks yet another national loss occasioned by the failure of the Buhari administration to secure the nation beyond lip service, a development that has emboldened marauders in our country,” it said.

PDP posited that Funke Olakunrin must not die in vain, stressed “Our dear nation must not continue to lose her finest and brightest in the hands of bandits. Our party therefore charges the authorities to go beyond condolence messages from Abuja and take concrete steps to apprehend Funke Olakunrin’s killers, as well as ensure security of lives in our nation.”

The PDP, while condoling Pa Fasoranti, urged “the Inspector General of Police, Adamu Mohammed, to take immediate and decisive steps, beyond the lip service of the Buhari administration, to track down the killers without further delay and make them face the full wrath of the law, no matter who they are.”

Meanwhile, the Inspector General of Police, has assured the nation that the killers of Mrs Olakunrin will certainly be found and made to face the full weight of the Law.

Force PRO, Frank Mba explained that the Ondo State Police Command, backed by Special Forces and seasoned investigators from the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID), the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) and the Technical Intelligence Unit (TIU) deployed from the Force Headquarters, Abuja, on his directives, had already commenced a massive manhunt for the killers with a view to tracking, arresting and bringing them to justice.

While condemning the heinous and barbaric crime, the IGP, as part of measures to prevent a future occurrence of such incidence, has ordered the total overhaul of security architecture on the highways straddling the Southern part of the country, The Commissioners of Police in the affected States were ordered by the IGP to emplace adequate security arrangement in their areas of jurisdiction (AOR).

The IGP equally assured the nation that the Force Headquarters had perfected plans to replicate the special security arrangement powered by “Operation Puff Adder” currently ongoing in Kaduna- Abuja expressway in key highways in the Southern part of the country.

The IGP further reiterates the fact that the Force will not rest on its oars until sanity is restored in every nook and cranny of the country.

The IGP also called for calm and support from all Nigerians, especially residents of Ondo State, in aid of the current investigation.