Two Police divisions with­in Ebonyi State capital city, Kpirikpiri and Ekumenyi divisions have been operat­ing under rented apartments since they were established after the creation of Ebonyi State so many years ago, in­vestigations have revealed.

While Kpirikpiri Division is located along old Enugu Road, Ekumenyi Division is at No.15 Nobi Street, Abaka­liki, and both are some poles away from the State Police Headquarters.

Besides operating in rented apartments, the two buildings housing the two divisions are in a very de­plorable condition, and the policemen serving therein, are no longer finding it easy to effectively discharge their duties under such conditions.

A top police source who spoke to our reporter in confidence as she was not authorised to speak on the matter, specifically disclosed that civilians also live in the same premises housing the two Police Divisions, adding that none of the buildings had restroom.

According to the police source, a civilian who lives there once brought a com­plaint to the State Police Command that a Division­al Police Officer (DPO) in charge of Kpirikpiri Divi­sion (name withheld) poured away his pot of soup.

“The worst is that the apartments are very small to accommodate our men. If you go there, you will see makeshifts constructed by our men that serve as their offices,” the source added.

A civilian (name with­held) who is a co-tenant in the premises housing the Ekumenyi Division also told our reporter that the place had become a ghetto, adding that “the excreta of those inside the cell is making the situation more unbearable.”

When contacted, the State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) DSP Loveth Odah, refused to speak on the matter, saying that any question about the condition of the two police divisions should be directed to Ebonyi State Government.

Mr. Stanley Okoro Emegha, the State Commis­sioner for Border Peace and Internal Security, in a tele­phone chat with our report­er, said the state government would not do everything, add­ing that government recent­ly renovated the state police headquarters with modern facilities.

“Must the state govern­ment do everything at all times? Ebonyi State Police Command is seen as the best headquarters in the whole federation, courtesy of Ebo­nyi State Government. Go to Liberation Estate and see a beautiful building that was given to the police. So, who is saying that the police are operating on rented apart­ment? Is Ebonyi the only state where Police are oper­ating on a rented apartment?

“However, Ebonyi State Government is putting much efforts to see that security agencies in the state operate in a very good environment, and very soon, they will be given another place they will stay,”, Emegha said.