A pressure group, Peace and Anti Corruption Advocacy, has condemned unguarded and unverifiable insinuations against Police hierarchy by some Civil Society Organisations (CSOs).
The group in a statement by its national coordinator, Comrade James Okoronkwo in Abuja, Sunday noted that the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) under the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Adamu, has continued to excel not withstanding inadequate funding.
The national coordinator said the Police boss has brought to bear on the citizenry the consciousness that security is a joint responsibility of the citizens and the police and other security agencies.
The statement maintained that with the population of about 200 million people and less than 400,000 policemen, Nigeria was under policed, stressing that, in spite of the shortfall, the police has continued to give good account of itself.
Okoronkwo warned members of the civil society turned fifth columnists to desist from making unguarded and unverifiable insinuations against police hierarchy, pointing out that scoring the Enugu and Kogi states Police Commands low in discipline and professionalism without verifiable proof was unfair.
He decried the fact that the ‘so called human rights campaigners’ have allowed themselves to be used in disparaging decent and transparent police officer whose service records are unassailable, even as they continue to place themselves in harms way in order to ensure the safety of lives and property of Nigerians.
“Peace and Anti Corruption Advocacy admonishes human rights crusaders not to be used as willing tools to settle scores. Let us verify what people bring to us before going public with unfounded allegations”, the statement said.
The group wondered what these campaigners intended to achieve when they jumped to conclusion without investigating or hearing the other side of the story before going public with the report, adding: “That is not a hallmark of professionalism and objectivity in human rights campaign.”
The group urged the authorities and the public to discountenance the campaign of calumny against the Police adding that it was capable of creating disaffection in the system.
