DIG Alabi Tasks Police Officers on Respect for Human Rights
From Priscilla Ediare, Ado-Ekiti
The Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of the FCID, FHQ, Abuja, and the coordinating DIG of the South West Geo-political Zone, DIG Abiodun Alabi, has urged officers and men of the Nigeria Police Force to build good relationships with people in society.
He charged them to respect the fundamental human rights of the people, irrespective of their backgrounds, saying that the police need the support of the people to tackle crime.
The DIG made the remarks during a meeting with stakeholders at the Ekiti State Police headquarters in Ado-Ekiti on Monday as part of his familiarisation tour of the South West zone, where he urged the officers to make discipline their watchword.
He disclosed that the police would embrace the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to combat crime effectively and reduce its menace in the country.
“My coming to Ekiti State is to complete my assignment in the South West geo-political zone,” he said.
“My mission is in compliance with the directive of the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Egbetokun, who directed all DIGs in charge of the six geo-political zones to embark on a tour across the zones and assess the strategic deployment of our arsenals in crime fighting and see how our officers are doing their jobs.
“This is to enable us to know the challenges they are facing in the course of their duty so that they can be addressed appropriately, so that their capacity and flexibility will be enhanced in delivering good services to the public.
“It is not yet over; technological improvement is more essential. Gadgets like drones that will gather information for us, that will dig into kidnappers’ hideouts, will help to deal with them instead of us rescuing victims.
“Technology is very important; we will definitely migrate to imbibe the technological advances. It is obvious that we cannot effectively carry out our policing work without involving technological devices to assist us.
“We are not shying away from the usage of drones; we are going to get used to it.”
Earlier, in his welcome address, the Ekiti State Commissioner of Police, CP Akinwale Adeniran, said that with the commitment and dedication of his officers and men, the command had been able to curb the activities of criminal elements, hence the peaceful atmosphere in the state.
“I wish to intimate the DIG that the command under my leadership has successfully, many times, tamed the activities of criminal elements across the state, and consequently, created an enabling environment for the good people of Ekiti State through the adoption and implementation of the IGP’s Community Policing Strategy,” he said.
The CP, who said the command was faced with a shortage of manpower, among other challenges, appealed to the DIG to assist in addressing them.
“I want to state here that in addition to the challenges of inadequate manpower and logistics confronting the command, there is the additional problem of the incessant transfer of personnel out of the command, both from the Force Headquarters and zonal levels,” he said. “In this wise, I wish to make a passionate appeal to the DIG to help in stemming the tide. The command needs more hands than the strength at its disposal in order to sustain the peace being witnessed in the state and even do better.
“The command has been unarguably adjudged as one of the most peaceful states in the country. This fact does not come by chance, but can be attributed to the commitment, dedication, and dexterity of the personnel, with the attendant partnership and cooperation of the good people of Ekiti State, being the Fountain of Knowledge.”
