By Precious Akutamadu
The Inspector General of Police (IG), Kayode Egbetokun, has stated that the police are committed to promoting transparency, accountability, and community-oriented policing in Nigeria.
Egbetokun, represented by the Commissioner of Police in Rivers, CP Olugbenga Adepoju, made the remark during a two-day citizen’s engagement meeting organised by the CLEEN Foundation in Port Harcourt on Wednesday.
He explained that the meeting was to engage with the community heads, the citizens and the Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in line with the police reform agenda in the country.
He stated the need for police reform in Nigeria, saying that the current policing system, established by the Police Act of 1861, is outdated and inadequate for addressing modern-day crimes.
“We must adapt to the changing nature of crimes, such as cybercrime, economic fraud, and terrorism.
“To achieve this, we unveiled a roadmap to tackle systemic inefficiencies and promote a more responsive and accountable police force.
“This includes enhancing police training to tackle modern day crimes effectively, upgrading police infrastructure, and promoting community policing initiatives, proper supervision, and welfare,” he added.
He stated that the current reforms being implemented poised to transform the police force to align with the needs and aspirations of the Nigerian government and citizens of the country.
” I assure you that we are committed to implementing these reforms.
“We will prioritise building trust with the community, ensuring that our officers are trained to respect human rights, and promoting a culture of transparency and accountability,” he assured.
The IGP assured that the police would collaborate with the citizens and members of CSOs in line with the reform agenda.
He urged the public to be friendly with the police, assuring that the police would always be there to protect the citizens.
Egbetokun further advised the public to report to the police authority if any of the personnel act negatively or above the law to citizens.
In his own remark, the CP in Rivers urged the public to call the police engagement mobile lines to report any case or life threatening activities in their areas.
The numbers are, 08033383997 for the CP monitoring team numbers, and 08032771100 for the CP Xsquard.
Others are, Public Relations Officer number, 08161355218 and the Complaint Response Unit numbers, 07057605209, 07057605256, 08120822987, and 07072323049.
Earlier in a speech, Peter Maduoma, Acting Executive Director, the CLEEN Foundation, said that his organisation organised the meeting with the support of the UNDP and German Agency for Development.
Maduoma said that the meeting, aimed at finding ways for effective policing, would birth a charter of demand to be submitted to the leadership of the police, particularly in Rivers.
He stated that the insecurity in the nation had become more imperative for citizens to join hands with the police to ensure an improved policing of the country for the benefit of all.
According to Maduoma, the residents of Rivers state and community heads, after this engagement, presented the comprehensive charter of demand for police reform.
“This charter of demand represents the citizens’ collective voice and the determination to establish the police force as accountable, efficient and responsive community base, especially in the state.
“We acknowledged that the effective policing is a shared responsibility requiring the collaboration of all stakeholders, including government agencies, law enforcement, CSOs and the communities,’’ Maduoma said.
He, however, thanked the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the German Agency for Development for their support in the improvement of policing in the country. (NAN)
