Rivers CP dies, IG mourns

The Commissioner of Police, Rivers State Police Command, Mobolaji Odesanya, has died at the Sterling Hospital, Ahmedabad-Gujarat in India after a battle with kidney disease. Odesanya passed away at the age of 56, a statement on Tuesday in Abuja by the Force Public Relations Officer, Moshood Jimoh, stated. The statement said the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, expressed sadness over the demise and condoled with the family of the late CP, the government and people of Ogun State. It added that a condolence register had been opened at the reception of the Force Headquarters and the Rivers State Police Command headquarters, Port Harcourt, for the personnel of the force and members of the public to register their condolence messages. Burial arrangements, it said, would be announced after consultation with the family. It stated, “The Inspector-General of Police and his management team, on behalf of the entire officers and men of the Nigeria Police Force, wish to commiserate with the Odesanya family of Ikenne, Ogun State, the government and the good people of Ogun State on the passage unto glory of their illustrious son, CP Francis Mobolaji Odesanya. “May his gentle soul rest in perfect peace and the good Lord grant his family and the government and good people of Ogun State the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss.” Meanwhile, there was a discomforting silence at the Rivers State Police Command as the news of Odesanya’s death was broken to the officers and men of the command. It was gathered that Odesanya was the 37th Commissioner of Police in Rivers State. Odesanya took over from Mr. Foluso Adebanjo in July, 2016, when the latter was promoted to the rank of Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of Information and Communication Technology at the Force Headquarters, Abuja. It was learnt that the state CP was hale and hearty until December, 2016, when he took ill and was flown abroad. Police personnel described Odesanya’s demise as a painful one to the command, adding that the CP was a “nice and easy-going man” that was interested in the welfare of everybody. The policeman, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Odesanya transformed the command less than a year after he took over as the number one police officer in the command. “We will miss him a lot. He was a professional police officer. He was one man who was not interested in politics, but was dedicated to his job. Within a few months, he has been able to transform the police,” the police source stated. Another policeman, who was apparently shaken by the news of the CP’s death, said the command would not forget the good deeds of the deceased, describing Odesanya as a “true professional.” The state Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Nnamdi Omoni, however, told one of our correspondents that he could not speak on the CP’s death, adding that the Force Headquarters would issue a statement on the development. Odesanya was born in Lagos and hailed from Irolu in the Ikenne Local Government Area of Ogun State. Odesanya enlisted into the Force on February 2, 1986, as a cadet assistant superintendent of police and rose through the ranks to the position of Commissioner of Police. As an Area Commander for Area G in Ogba, Lagos State, Odesanya, in 2010, personally led an operation that helped to dislodge a group of armed robbers, who attacked Wema Bank, Dopemu, where some of the hoodlums were shot dead while others were arrested. He also served as Deputy Commissioner of Police, Department of Operations, and that of Finance and Administration in Rivers State before he was promoted and posted as the CP in the state on J

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