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I Will Make Community Policing Work, New IGP Egbetokun Vows
Newly appointed Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun has vowed to make community policing work as he assumed office at the Force Headquarters in Abuja.
He stated this on Wednesday when he officially took over the leadership of the Nigeria Police Force from retired IGP Usman Baba.
IGP Egbetokun warned police officers that he won’t tolerate abuse of office, corruption and misconduct, saying commensurate stiff punishment await erring officers.
The new police boss also said he will, in the coming days and months, unveil his strategies and tactics to secure the country and protect Nigerians from all forms of security challenges including banditry and gunmen attacks.
IGP Egbetokun said the salaries of constables recruited sometimes ago are already being looked into and the salaries, arrears and allowances will be paid by month end.
According to him, every law-abiding citizen will be brought on board in the fight against crime under his watch. The new police chief stressed that human intelligence garnered from communities would be used alongside technical gathering of information to curb crimes.
“Apart from technical intelligence, we are also going to rely so much on human intelligence available in our communities. We are going to be proactive in our approach to solving our community problems,” he said.
Quest For Community Policing
As banditry, vicious herdsmen attacks, killings and abductions increase in Nigeria in the last couple of years, some state government and socio-political groups like the Afenifere and the Ohanaeze Ndigbo had clamoured for community policing to tackle peculiar security challenges in the localities. Prior to the 2023 elections, the groups also called for constitutional review to allow devolution of powers and decentralised policing system.
In 2020, six states in the South-West geopolitical zone jointly formed a regional security operation code-named Operation Amotekun, which has since been backed by law and operational in Oyo, Ondo, Ekiti, Ogun and Osun states. Also, in 2021, five South-East state governments formed Ebube Agu and the regional security outfit has since been operationalised just as the Benue State Government in 2022 launched the Benue Guards.
However, lack of arms licence for the men of these state-owned security have been said to hamper their effectiveness even as calls grow for the police to let them bear assault rifles like AK-47.
As part of its efforts to make community policing work, the administration of then President Muhammadu Buhari in August 2020 approved the sum of N13.3bn for the take-off of community policing initiative across the country but some challenges have encumbered the implementation of the initiative.
‘Challenges Will Be Addressed’
Acknowledging the challenges in the implementation of the initiative, the new IGP said they would be resolved and community policing is going to work.
IGP Egbetokun said, “On community policing, there is a lot that we are going to do differently in the implementation of the community policing strategies that we are operating presently.
“I discussed that with the retiring IG, my predecessor just before we came here and he told me all the problems we are facing with the implementation of the community policing strategies. We are not going to set it aside, we are going to continue with it but we are going to review a lot of things. We are going to make it work.”
The Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN has warned against obstructing the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from carrying out its lawful duty .
Fagbemi’s warning is contained in a statement in Abuja.
“This is a matter of very grave concern, it is now beyond doubt that the EFCC is given power by the law to invite any person of interest to interact with them in the course of their investigations into any matter, regardless of status.
“Therefore, the least that we can all do when invited, is not to put any obstruction in the way of EFCC, but to honourably answer their invitation.
“A situation where public officials who are themselves subject of protection by law enforcement agents will set up a stratagem of obstruction to the civil and commendable efforts of the EFCC to perform its duty is to say the least, insufferably disquieting’’.
He added that running away from the law will not resolve issues at stake but only exacerbate them.
“Nigeria has a vibrant judicial system that is capable of protecting everyone who follows the rule of law in seeking protection.
“I therefore encourage anyone who has been invited by the EFCC or any other agency to immediately toe the path of decency and civility by honouring such invitation instead of embarking on a temporising self-help and escapism.
“This can only put our country in bad light before the rest of the world’’.
He said institutions of state should be allowed to function effectively and efficiently.
“I stand for the rule of law and will promptly call EFCC, and indeed any other agency to order when there is an indication of any transgressions of the fundamental rights of any Nigerian by any of the agencies’’.
NAN reports that the EFCC had on Wednesday warned members of the public that it was a criminal offence to obstruct officers of the Commission from carrying out their lawful duties.
Section 38(2)(a(b) of the EFCC Establishment Act makes it an offence to prevent officers of the Commission from carrying out their lawful duties. Culprits risk a jail term of not less than five years.
The warning , the EFCC said, became necessary against the background of the increasing tendency by persons and groups under investigation by the Commission to take the laws into their hands by recruiting thugs to obstruct lawful operations of the EFCC.
On several occasions, the anti graft agency said, operatives of the Commission have had to exercise utmost restraint in the face of such provocation to avoid a breakdown of law and order.
Some unknown gunmen have kidnapped Joshua Rogers, the ChannelsTV reporter in Port-Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.
Politics Nigeria learnt that Rogers was picked up close to his residence at Rumuosi in Port Harcourt and to an unknown destination by the gunmen around 9pm on Thursday, April 11.
The reporter was driving his official ChannelsTV branded car when the hoodlums accosted, pointed a gun at him and took him away in the same vehicle.
Rogers was said to be returning from his official assignment in Government House after a trip to Andoni for a government event when the incident happened.
Already, the gunmen were said to have contacted his wife and demanded a N30million ransom for bis release.
His cameraman confirmed the incident and appealed to his abductors to set him free unconditionally.
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