Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has expressed shock over the cache of arms and ammunition recovered from kidnappers in the state by the crack team of security agencies saying such weapons if deployed were capable of dislodging Port Harcourt, the capital city.

The weapons were part of the recent achievements of the crack team, codenamed Operation Sting.

The Commissioner of Police, Mustapha Dandaura, earlier displayed 3,249 arms and ammunition, which operatives of the crack team recovered from bandits in the state.

Among the weapons were General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG), G-3 rifles, SMG rifle, one rocket launcher (RPG), Pump Action guns, 933 rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition, 1,111 rounds of 5.56mm live ammunition among others.

Wike, who reportedly briefed journalists in Government House, Port Harcourt, declared that his administration would continue to work towards keeping Rivers safe in line with his constitutional responsibility of protecting everyone living in the state.

The governor commended security agencies in the State for working with the state government to check the activities of criminals.

He said:

“I have made a vow that Rivers State must be safe. It is a duty that we are committed to carry out. We have no excuses to give.”

The governor said that as the government continued to fight to protect Rivers people from coronavirus, it would not relent in ensuring the security of lives and property.

He urged the media to also focus on the successes of the State Security Council in the area of securing lives in the state adding that bursting the kidnap syndicate was a major achievement by Operation Sting.

He said:

“Coronavirus is a serious war. Then add this to the fight against insecurity and you understand that it is not easy for us. But we shall continue to work for the security and safety of our people.

“We don’t want anyone to politicise the issue of security. We also don’t want anyone to politicise the fight against coronavirus,” he said.

He wondered what the criminals were doing with sub-machine gun and rocket grenade launchers.

He said that Operation Sting was on the heels of a notorious Isiokpo Kidnapper, who would soon be apprehended and prosecuted.

“We give God the glory for keeping us safe in Rivers State even as we battle this coronavirus pandemic. Rivers State Government is working to keep our people safe, yet some criminals want to make the State insecure,” he said.

Earlier, Dandaura commended the Rivers governor for his logistical support that had energised the security outfit to achieve notable success.

He said that the Operation Sting initiated by Wike sanitised the hitherto troublesome East West Road, the Elele-Owerri Road and the Ogoni axis of the East West Road, making the state safer for residents and visitors.

The Commissioner assured that the security agencies would continue to work hard to protect lives and property in the state.

Dandaura said that the State Police Command recovered the arms from Ogu/Bolo Local Government Area, following credible intelligence.

He said that the Kidnap syndicate hid the arms underground in the forest.