The need for the people to trust security agents and always be vigilant have been stressed. Making a case for trust for the police, the Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, has reiterated that addressing the mistrust between the Nigeria police and the citizenry is crucial for combating insecurity and creating a safe environment for all and sundry. Alamutu made this disclosure in Abeokuta, Ogun state while delivering a lecture titled, ‘Insecurity in Nigeria: The mistrust between police and citizenry’.
According to him, security is a dynamic situation in which any entity such as a state or nation, could only ward-off threats to its deep-rooted values and interests by putting in place mechanisms of protecting persons, information and property against hostile persons, influences and actions. He stressed that rebuilding trust requires multifaceted approach, which encompasses community policing, accountability, human rights training, public awareness campaigns, public engagement and dialogue, stakeholders engagement, adequate funding and systemic reforms, saying by implementing these measures, Nigeria could foster a stronger partnership between the police and the citizen.
The state police boss, however, reiterated that these solutions should be implemented in a coordinated and sustained manner, involving multiple stakeholders, including the three arms of government, the police institution, other sister law enforcement agencies, civil society organisations, and the citizens themselves. He added that by addressing the root cause of mistrust and promoting a collaborative approach, “Nigeria can build a stronger relationship between the police and the citizens, thereby improving security and fostering social cohesion”.
In the same vein, people in the community have been called upon to relay intelligent information to the police, adding that giving information today is simpler when compared to years back. According to the Administrative Secretary, Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC), Ogun State Command, Comrade Sanmi Ogundele, the establishment of the PCRC was necessitated to assist the police, noting that the slogan, ‘if you see something, you say something’ was to encourage community dwellers to be proactive in giving intelligent information to the police, stating that the body does not have the apparatus to fight crime.
He said it had been the conviction of the PCRC that community policing was the best, noting that the people in a community could easily recognise an outsider, saying “it is only those in the community that can secure such a community”. Meanwhile, the state Public Relations Officer, PCRC, Ogun State Command, Chief Babatunde Odeyemi said security “is a collective business”, adding that parents have a lot to do in the training and upbringing of the children, noting that majority of the children that got involved in cultism or other societal vices are from broken homes. Chief Odeyemi, however, revealed that “there is synergy between the PCRC and other security outfits in Ogun State, saying they have been doing well in providing intelligence with the admonition that civilians should accord security of life and property the necessary attention.
Meanwhile, going by the relationship between regular power supply and security, the Public Relations Officer of the Nigerian Union of Mine Workers (NUMW), Ogun State Council, Comrade Tunde Soneye, has charged state governors to take an advantage of the decentralisation of the power sector to establish power generating and distributing companies in their various states. Soneye said the Federal Government should walk the talk by formulating policies and putting mechanism in place that would enable their state counterparts to set-up their own power generating companies, saying if the state could generate uninterrupted power supply, it would lead to additional revenue for the government.
The NUMW spokesman stated further that some of the problems of the nation’s power sector include corruption, obsolete equipment and vandalism, adding that the government should step-up its games in terms of security by using modern technology in monitoring those equipment, saying government should be able to secure their properties. Comrade Soneye, however, urged the Federal Government to desist from removing electricity subsidy, saying already, “there is hardship in the land due to subsidy removal on petrol”, and hoped that if things are done rightly, there would be light at the end of the tunnel for the country’s power sector.
From the submissions, the need to trust our security personnel is vital at ensuring that the people live peacefully while being vigilant to ensure that they are not careless about things happening around their premises. This is because individuals remain first the chief security officers of their houses, offices, and shops. Hence, these are done, it becomes easier to curb crime and live safely while on the other hand, the government should perform its obligation by putting in place, necessary mechanism in place that would enable their state counterparts to set-up their own power generating companies for the provision of adequate security and stable power without relegating to the background, the ills of corruption, obsolete equipment and vandalism such that the government should do more when it comes to the deployment of modern technology in monitoring those equipment to ensure that the purpose for such an investment is not lost.
