Author: Suleiman Shehu

Police

By Suleiman Shehu

Ibadan, June 5, 2024 (NAN) Abiodun Alabi, the Deputy Inspector-General (DIG) of Police in charge of South-West Zone, says the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) now need to put up more effective policing plans.

Alabi, during his official visit to the Police Command in Oyo State on Wednesday in Ibadan, said this would help them to tackle illegal mining, kidnapping and other crimes.

The DIG, who said he was visiting based on the Inspector-General (IG) of Police’s directive to appraise security in the zone, urged the officers to return to the drawing board.

“This will help you to see where there are challenges and how to address them,” he said.

Alabi, who is also in charge of the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID), urged the officers not to rest on their oars.

’But you should redouble your efforts to enhance effective policing and effectively curb crime in the state.

“It is when there is visibility policing that criminals will be afraid to come out, but if you leave a vacuum they will come out to perpetrate their crime.

“Put more energy in crime prevention and detection and this will make the public to trust and appreciate our efforts,” he said.

Alabi further urged the officers to collaborate with members of the community and other critical stakeholders to get information needed to effectively perform their duty of protection of lives and property.

The DIG pointed out that policing was not a one man’s job, and officers should obviously note that they could not effectively do it except with the community’s collaboration.

“You must get members of the public involved, no matter how strategic you are. No matter your professionalism, if you don’t have information and intelligence, you will just be doing reactive policing, instead of proactive,” Alabi said.

Earlier, the Commissioner of Police in Oyo State, Adebola Hamzat, who was represented by the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Administration), Bello Adamu, highlighted the command’s achievements and challenges.

“We appreciate the DIG for this visit,” he added.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the DIG also visited the Oyo State Governor’s Office, where he was received by the state’s Deputy Governor, Mr Adebayo Lawal.

Lawal, who appreciated efforts of the police in the state, said the South-West states, including Oyo State, were facing security challenges such as kidnapping and armed robbery, among others.

He said Oyo State was endowed with solid minerals, which made it prone to security challenges due to activities of illegal miners who had infiltrated the forests in the state.

The deputy governor called for more deployment of police personnel to rid the state of kidnapping and other forms of crimes.

“The administration of Gov. Seyi Makinde has taken the issue of security seriously and has deployed a lot of logistics to police and other security agencies to ensure that the state is peaceful,” he said.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

SYS/FON/OLAL

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(Edited by Florence Onuegbu and Olawale Alabi)

Drone

By Suleiman Shehu

Ibadan, June 3, 2024 (NAN) The Inspector-General of Police (I-G), Kayode Egbetokun, says the Nigeria Police Force will soon establish a full drone system to tackle the nation’s security challenges adequately.

Egbetokun said this while delivering the first distinguished Personality Lecture, organised by the TETFUND Centre of Excellence in Multidisciplinary Studies (TCEMS), University of Ibadan (UI), on Monday in Ibadan.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the lecture was titled: “The Nigeria Police Force and the Management of Internal Security”.

Egbetokun said although the force already had a drone, it would now establish a full drone system to capture everywhere in Nigeria from its headquarters in Abuja.

According to him, the drone system will also help the police see criminals whenever they are committing crimes.

‘The ungoverned spaces will soon become governed,” he said.

He further said the force would establish a Special Intervention Squad (SIS) in all the states of the federation to tackle kidnapping, banditry and other forms of criminality in Nigeria.

The police boss said the deployment of the SIS in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) had yielded results leading to the arrest of many kidnappers and bandits, including the recovery of weapons.

The I-G said the force had also established dedicated anti-kidnapping units across various states, focusing on intelligence gathering and rapid responses to kidnapped incidents.

The units, he said, had successfully conducted numerous rescue operations leading to the safe return of kidnapped victims and the arrest of perpetrators.

Egbetokun highlighted the shortage of manpower, inadequate equipment, public distrust and insufficient budgetary provisions as some of the challenges facing the force.

He, however, pledged the force’s commitment to the protection of lives and property of citizens.

In his remarks, the Vice-Chancellor of UI, Prof. Kayode Adebowale, commended the I-G for his visionary leadership in managing the nation’s security challenges.

Also, the acting Director of TCEMS, Dr Benjamin Aluko, said the lecture was organised to elicit constructive discussions that would reshape the country’s security situation. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

SYS/CHOM/MAS
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Edited by Chioma Ugboma and Moses Solanke