Police boss apologizes

Liberia’s Police Inspector General Col. Patrick Sudue has made public apology to members of the Liberian Senate, after being summoned for adjusting restrictions on commercial motorcyclists’ movement and allowing them to drive through certain routes considered “no – go zones.”

His appearance Thursday before the Senate was marred by apologies and appeals to Senators for taking hasty decision to return commercial motorcyclists in the main streets of Paynesville affecting routes from Redlight to ELWA Junction and from Redlight to Freeport on the Somalia Drive.

Young men believed to be commercial motorcyclists barricaded surroundings of the Capitol Building on Thursday, 8 March to show support for the police chief while he faced the Senate’s full plenary.

He was invited before the Senate to answer to how the commercial motorcyclists were reappearing in the streets that were earlier considered by his predecessors as “no – go zones” in Monrovia and other parts of Montserrado County.

The Senators’ decision to invite Mr. Sudue followed a lengthy debate over two separate communications from Senators Geraldine Doe-Sherif of Montserrado County and Stephen Zargo of Lofa County.

The two Senators had called their colleagues’ attention to the resurfacing of commercial motorcycles in the principal streets of Monrovia.Following Senators’ disagreement on the decision, Mr. Sudue, without delay, said the decision he took to bring back motorcyclists was his decision.

Inspector General Sudue says he’s new in the position as head of the Liberia National Police and everyone has a period of learning curve. But he promises to build further consultations with all stakeholders in the future.

Police annual statistics reveal that deaths in road accidents last year were 175 while in 2015 a total of 215 people died in such mishaps. In 2016, road accident injuries were 1,539, compared to 1,118 in 2015.

By E. J. Nathaniel Daygbor–Edited by Winston W. Parley