By Adeola Ogunlade
The Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, Abiodun Alabi, has called for more involvement and participation of women in conflict intervention for better policing at the community level.
Alabi said this at the 1st Lagos State Police and Women Security Dialogue organised by Impact Her World Foundation in partnership with the African Youths Initiative on Crime Prevention held recently at the Youth Centre in Lagos.
The event brought together women and police officers from different communities in Lagos. It featured a speech presentation, interactive sessions, and the launch of the Women in security, Peace and Diplomacy Network (WISPAD), Nigeria.
The Lagos police boss said that the need to support and strengthen women’s participation in a conflict intervention effort and provide financial and technical skills is imperative in our search for better community policing.
He said that women played a key role in community safety and they must participate in the design and implementation of conflict intervention and peace-building activities at the community level.
Alabi lamented cultural prejudices, financial challenges, limited access to land, capital, training, gender-based violence, and other forms of abuses that tend to silence women’s role in policing which must be looked into by all stakeholders so that we can all benefit from women’s important role in conflict transformation in rural areas.
Alabi, who was represented by the Divisional Police Officer, Alausa Police Division, CSP Oluwatoyin Elizabeth Opadola noted that the Nigeria Police is positioned and ready to collaborate with women at all levels to ensure community safety which is crucial for development in our country.
The CP urged communities not to be afraid of giving information about crimes and criminality in their areas to the police and other security agencies.
He also implored them to always be interested in the activities of the police and see the police as their family members and not mere friends.
Earlier in her words, the Executive Director of Impact Her World Foundation, Mrs. Nkechika Ibe said that the programme was put together to bridge the knowledge gap between the Nigeria Police and the women.
Ibe said “I have realized that there is a huge knowledge and information gap between the police which are supposed to be enforcement agencies and the local women. Women played crucial roles in society beyond being home keepers, they are part and parcel of society”.
She stressed that to localise and domesticate community safety, women must not be left behind as they played a crucial role in transforming conflicts into peace.
“We are inaugurating WISPAD to galvanize the effort of women in a bid to ensure local safety. We will be bringing local women, Nigerian police, and international communities to the same space for effective collaboration in policing”, she said.