Inspector General of Police (IGP); Mohammed Adamu on Friday hailed Governor Dapo Abiodun’s “zeal” and “commitment to fight crimes” in Ogun State, saying such disposition is a “clear message to other states” to emulate.
Adamu made this known at the arcade ground; Oke – Mosan Governor’s Office, Abeokuta, the state capital, while inaugurating 100 Hilux vans and 200 motorcycles donated to the Ogun State Police Command by Abiodun – led administration.
The IGP disclosed that he had earlier met with the officers of the Command who briefed him about the Governor’s continued good gestures, saying the officers too had assured him that they would “double their efforts to make Ogun the safest state in the country.”
Earlier, the Police boss while meeting with men and officers of the Command at its Headquarters in Elewera said the Federal Government had procured special vehicles and protective gadgets for the Police to ensure that no officer loses his life in the course of fighting crimes in Nigeria.
He also disclosed that the much talked about community policing would commence soon nationwide.
Adamu said that casualties often recorded in the course of police fighting crimes in Nigeria have become a serious source of concerns to the federal government which informed the resolve to priorities the welfare of the police personnel nationwide.
He stated further that the new security vehicles are equipped with cameras and other technologies that would make any police patrol team detect and clearly screen a scene of the crime from a far-away distance even before getting to the spot of the crime.
He also explained that the federal government has redesigned the police welfare package in such a way that will take care of the officers and men’s health conditions through the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) as well as new mortgage scheme that will afford all police officers to own homes of their own without much hassle.
He advised police officers who desirous of owning home of theirs to open and maintain saving accounts with the new Police Mortgage Bank, while those with deteriorating health condition of himself or members of his family which does not come within the care of NHIS, would be handled by the newly established Police Health Management Office of every command.
The Police boss said he is returning community policing to the people themselves to bridge the gap between the force and the public, stressing that the federal government has also resolved that communities would now take over the policing of their environment, while the conventional police force provide them the needed backups and supports.
Towards actualising this however, Adamu said the police hierarchy has evolved a strategy that will make it identify and recruit the new intakes from among the well-established “communities” such as the traditional institutions, market associations and but not limited to the transport unions and the academia.
Such community police officers to be recruited, according to the IGP, would have to be those born and brought up from such settings in order to enable them function effectively on the job.
He enjoined police officer, particularly those from the Ogun command net to be deterred in the discharge of their duties, stressing that the state governor has always been proud and commended their gallant efforts towards warding off crimes in the state.