The Inspector General of Police, IGP Usman Baba, has expressed concern over rising rate of corruption and abuse of fire arms among officers and men of the Nigeria Polics Force (NPF).
The police boss, who was on a one-day duty tour of the FCT Police Command, Tuesday, which incidentally was his birthday, said with his 34th year in service weeks away he was at the Command to share a few things he wanted the officers and men to consider.
IGP Baba, who decried the fact that corruption and abuse of firearms had become the order of day, however, exempted the officers and men of the Command from the worrying trend, stating that efforts to meet the yearning and aspiration of people in the FCT by the command was commendable.
“Going by the pattern of crime in the FCT the Command was doing its best but room for improvement. Success and achievement should be something that should continue to make you stand on your feet to do better to ensure that the territory is crime free.
“The Nigeria Police are jack of all trade, and are the first to be contacted in addressing any distress from members of the public… Police as lead agent must synergies with other agencies. The space is large and there is no need for rivalry there is need for synergy.”
According to him, “There are no lazy officers in FCT, there is nobody that is not working in the command.”
The police boss, who commended the command on their performance during the recent area council poll, urged them to continue creating conducive environment for all law abiding citizens to co-exist.
He assured that they have the support of government, the Nigeria Police and the people, even as he tasked them to impove on their relationship with the public by cultivating a partnership with the public.
The police boss urged Divisional Police Officers (DPO) to deploy all crime preventive measures including road blocks, stop and search, as well as raids, however, warned them against abusing the which must serve the purpose for which it had been approved.
“Don’t raid because you want to arrest people and demand money for bail or block the road for stop and search so you can extort people. You must check your excesses especially in stop and search. Avoid working at cross purposes with sister agencies and the military because it will not yield the desired results.”
Speaking further, he said he was always disappointed when policemen are involved in crime and urged the CP in charge of the FCT to increase training in fire arms handling and understanding the law and it’s provisions, especially the Electoral Act as the country prepares for the 2023 general elections.
On welfare of the officers and men, he said they were working on it and promised to improve working environment for the Force, adding that they needed to work harder as “To whom much is given much is expected.”Earlier, in his welcome remark, CP Babaji Sunday assured the police boss of the Command’s “unalloyed loyalty, dedication, commitment and unflinching efforts to bring crime and criminality to the barest level.
CP Sunday, who highlighted some of the Command’s achievements under his leadership, noted inadequate manpower, accommodation for officers and men, patrol vehicles, travkers, drones and Amoured Personal Carriers (APCs), tear gas smoke, arms and ammunitions, were major challenges facing the Command.
